The role of imaging specialists as authors of systematic reviews on diagnostic and interventional imaging and its impact on scientific quality: report from the EuroAIM Evidence-based Radiology Working Group

Ref ID 11
First Author F. Sardanelli
Journal RADIOLOGY
Year Of Publishing 2014
URL https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24738613/
Keywords • Radiology
• Team
• Expertise
• Author
Problem(s) • Lack of clinical expert/ stakeholder/ user perspective
Article Type Empirical
Article Subtype Cross-sectional survey/Methodological systematic review
First Author Country Italy
Checklists • AMSTAR 1
Aim To assess the inclusion of radiologists or nuclear medicine physicians (imaging specialists) as authors of systematic reviews on imaging and to determine the impact of imaging specialists’ presence as authors on the overall methodological quality (modified AMSTAR) of the reviews published in MEDLINE and EMBASE between January 2001 and December 2010.
Level of Investigation Descriptive
Summary of Findings The inclusion of imaging specialists as authors was associated with a significant increase in the scientific quality (as judged by using a modified AMSTAR scale) of the systematic review from analysis of the 867 included systematic reviews of imaging. Imaging specialists were authors (in any position) in 330 (38%) of 867 systematic reviews; they were first authors of 176 systematic reviews and last authors of 161 systematic reviews. The median number of modified AMSTAR quality indicators was nine in systematic reviews with imaging specialists as authors, while that in systematic reviews without imaging specialists as authors was seven (P = .003).
Number of systematic reviews included 867
Number of eligible systematic reviews assessed 3258
Treatment impacted No
Treatment impacted description
Interpretation impacted Not Applicable
Interpretation impacted description