Overview of Cochrane Systematic Reviews for Children in Primary Care
Author Information
Author(s): Gill Peter J., Wang Kay Yee, Mant David, Hartling Lisa, Heneghan Carl, Perera Rafael, Klassen Terry, Harnden Anthony
Primary Institution: Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Hypothesis
What is the evidence base for interventions relevant to child health in primary care?
Conclusion
Cochrane systematic reviews do not comprehensively reflect the burden of childhood illness in primary care, highlighting a significant mismatch between research focus and clinical needs.
Supporting Evidence
- 396 systematic reviews were identified as relevant to childhood conditions in primary care.
- 55% of the reviews focused on chronic conditions.
- Only 7% of reviews were relevant to skin conditions, despite them accounting for 15-23% of consultations.
- 23% of reviews focused on asthma treatments, which only account for 3-5% of consultations.
Takeaway
This study looked at research on children's health care and found that many common health issues in kids aren't well covered by existing studies.
Methodology
The study reviewed Cochrane systematic reviews related to childhood conditions in primary care and compared them with consultation data from various countries.
Potential Biases
Potential bias due to the exclusion of studies focused on children under one month and reliance on existing systematic reviews.
Limitations
The study did not assess the quality of included systematic reviews and focused only on Cochrane reviews, potentially missing relevant studies outside this database.
Participant Demographics
The reviews included children aged 0-18 years.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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