Premium
Intervention quality is not routinely assessed in Cochrane systematic reviews of radiation therapy interventions
Author(s) -
Abdul Rahim Mohamad R,
James Melissa L,
Hickey Brigid E
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of medical imaging and radiation oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.31
H-Index - 43
eISSN - 1754-9485
pISSN - 1754-9477
DOI - 10.1111/1754-9485.12589
Subject(s) - medicine , psychological intervention , systematic review , medical physics , radiation therapy , intervention (counseling) , intensive care medicine , medline , psychiatry , political science , law
The aim of this study was to maximise the benefits from clinical trials involving technological interventions such as radiation therapy. High compliance to the quality assurance protocols is crucial. We assessed whether the quality of radiation therapy intervention was evaluated in Cochrane systematic reviews. Methods We searched 416 published Cochrane systematic reviews and identified 67 Cochrane systematic reviews that investigated radiation therapy or radiotherapy as an intervention. For each systematic review, either quality assurance or quality control for the intervention was identified by a description of such processes in the published systematic reviews. Results Of the 67 Cochrane systematic reviews studied, only two mentioned quality assurance or quality control. Conclusions Our findings revealed that 65 of 67 (97%) Cochrane systematic reviews of radiation therapy interventions failed to consider the quality of the intervention. We suggest that advice about the evaluation of intervention quality be added to author support materials.