![]() Consistency point deducted for different outcomes at different endpoints Quality points deducted for incomplete reporting of results, and for not reporting method of randomisation. What are the effects of drug treatments for herniated lumbar disc?Įpidural corticosteroids v no epidural corticosteroids Pain, functional improvement, mobility, patient perception of improvement, quality of life, adverse effects The contributors used confidence interval analysis and Chi-Square Test analysis from PEPI Version 4.0 in their own calculations, which are presented in the review. Readers should be aware of this when relating percentages to summary statistics such as relative risks (RRs) and odds ratios (ORs). To aid readability of the numerical data in our reviews, we round many percentages to the nearest whole number. We have performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions included in this review (see table In addition, we use a regular surveillance protocol to capture harms alerts from organisations such as the FDA and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), which are added to the reviews as required. ![]() We included systematic reviews of RCTs, and RCTs where harms of an included intervention were studied, applying the same study design criteria for inclusion as we did for benefits. We excluded all studies described as "open", "open label", or not blinded, unless blinding was impossible. There was no minimum length of follow-up required to include studies. Study design criteria for inclusion in this review were published systematic reviews of RCTs and RCTs in any language, at least single blinded, and containing more than 20 individuals of whom more than 80% were followed up. Selected studies were then sent to the contributor for additional assessment, using pre-determined criteria to identify relevant studies. Abstracts of the studies retrieved from the initial search were assessed by an information specialist. We also searched for retractions of studies included in the review. An additional search was carried out of the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (CRD) - for Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE) and Health Technology Assessment (HTA). The following databases were used to identify studies for this systematic review: Medline 1966 to July 2008, Embase 1980 to July 2008, and The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Clinical Trials 2008, Issue 2 (1966 to date of issue). ![]() Clinical Evidence search and appraisal July 2008.
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