Excerpt

AHRQ recognizes that periodic assessments of the evidence base supporting each of the comparative effectiveness reviews is an important and necessary part of the Effective Health Care (EHC) Program. The rapidity with which new research findings accumulate makes it imperative that the evidence be assessed periodically to determine the need for a full-scale update. The EHC Program, then, initiated concurrent and parallel work to address this need both methodologically and programmatically. The development of methods guidance for updating was initiated to inform the research of systematic reviewers. This methodologic guidance will supplement the EHC Methods Guide for Comparative Effectiveness Reviews (www.effectiveheathcare.gov). In parallel with the methods effort, an initial, rapid program assessment was commissioned to assess the need for the findings of the CERs completed to that point to be updated. The Southern California Evidence-based Practice Center (SCEPC) was tasked with conducting this assessment. Findings from the assessment were presented to AHRQ for consideration within the usual program criteria to prioritize the topics for updating within the EHC Program. This document presents the findings from the assessment for public information and transparency.

Contents

• Preface
• Background
• Methods
• Assessment of Need to Update CERs
  • Expert Consultation
  • Literature Searches
  • FDA MedWatch and Canadian Health Services Database Searches
  • Compilation of Findings
• Results and Conclusion
• References
• ATTACHMENT I Results and Conclusions
• ATTACHMENT II Evidence Tables
• ATTACHMENT III Search Strategies by topic

Acknowledgements: The Southern California Evidence-based Practice Center at RAND would like to acknowledge with appreciation the guidance of Beth Collins-Sharp and Supriya Janakiraman at AHRQ, Rose Campbell at Oregon Health Sciences Center, and the invaluable contributions of the technical experts who assisted with the assessments.

Prepared for: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.¹ Prepared by: Southern California Evidence-based Practice Center.

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