The confidence in the results of physiotherapy systematic reviews in the musculoskeletal field is not increasing over time: a meta-epidemiological study using AMSTAR 2 tool

Ref ID 1014
First Author N. Ferri
Journal JOURNAL OF CLINICAL EPIDEMIOLOGY
Year Of Publishing 2024
URL https://www-sciencedirect-com.sheffield.idm.oclc.org/science/article/pii/S0895435624000581?via%3Dihub
Keywords Physiotherapy
Musculoskeletal
Low methodological quality
Problem(s) Reasons for excluding potentially eligible studies not provided
Cochrane reviews more rigorous/higher quality than non-Cochrane reviews
Conflicts of interest or funding of included studies not assessed
Low methodological (AMSTAR) quality
Lack of prespecification in eligibility criteria
Insufficient literature searches
Number of systematic reviews included 100
Summary of Findings The confidence in the 100 random sample of inlcluded SRs results was critically low in 90% of the studies, and it did not increase over time. Cochrane reviews are predominantly represented in the higher AMSTAR 2 confidence levels.The AMSTAR 2 assessments showed that 93% of the studies did not explain the reason for the eligibility criteria of study designs, 78% did not report the list of the excluded studies and 90% did not check the funding sources of the primary studies; less than 10% of the SRs had a comprehensive search strategy.
Did the article find that the problem(s) led to qualitative changes in interpretation of the results? Not Applicable
Are the methods of the article described in enough detail to replicate the study?