BACKGROUND Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) presents mostly with locally advanced disease and is treated with multimodal therapy; however, consensus is lacking for different clinical scenarios. METHODS The American College of Radiology (ACR) Appropriateness Criteria® are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed every 3 years by a multidisciplinary expert pane...

This paper reports on some important findings of a study conducted in Covilhã/Portugal on appropriateness of hospital admission and in-hospital days in a Portuguese hospital using an adapted version of the Appropriateness Evaluation Protocol--a review tool for hospital utilization. This analysis showed a significant rate of inappropriateness in admission (24.6%) and days of stay (37.4%) and it ...

OBJECTIVE The appropriate role for chiropractic in US health care has not been established, but third-party payors and public policy makers must make decisions about the appropriate role for chiropractors in health care systems and for the services that chiropractors provide. Appropriateness studies for chiropractic may inform those decisions. The purpose of this article is to discuss the impli...

A systematic literature review of population prevalence studies of low back pain between 1966 and 1998 was conducted to investigate data homogeneity and appropriateness for pooling. Fifty-six studies were analyzed using methodologic criteria that examined sample representativeness, data quality, and pain definition. Acceptable studies were assessed for homogeneity and appropriateness for poolin...

BACKGROUND Controversy exists as to the criteria for selecting patients with carcinoma of the tonsil for treatment with ipsilateral radiotherapy (RT). METHODS The American College of Radiology (ACR) Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed every 2 years by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and review in...

The rapid increase in antimicrobial resistance is a great concern safeguarding the nursing home population. Improving inappropriate prescribing main agenda of stewardship. It complicated to articulate appropriateness prescribed residents, especially prophylaxis. tricky because most residents are often on multiple medications, and there no guidelines available for prescribers decide appropriaten...

BACKGROUND Craniopharyngiomas (CPs) are benign, locally aggressive neoplasms that comprise approximately 10% of pediatric brain tumors. The role of surgical management for CPs is discussed in this review. METHODS A review of the goals and techniques associated with selected surgical approaches for the treatment of CPs in the pediatric population is provided. RESULTS CPs may be a cause of si...

PURPOSE High-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy plays a potential curative role in the treatment of prostate cancer. An expert panel was convened to review the recent literature and reach a consensus on its appropriate clinical applications. METHODS AND MATERIALS The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are revie...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to identify the appropriateness of cesarean sections, performed in Tehran hospitals using standardized Rand Appropriateness Method (RAM) criteria. METHODS In this study we used the RAM criteria. In order to prepare the list of cesarean scenarios, clinical guidelines were selected, and the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation was used to choo...