Description of studies

DESCRIPTION OF STUDIES
Literature search

• Systematic review of the literature from 1966–October 2005 using MEDLINE and EmBASE, following the protocol of the Cochrane Collaboration (Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Update 2006 Search Terms)
• Inclusion of randomised studies in English, assessing analgesic interventions in laparoscopic cholecystectomy in adults, and reporting pain on a linear analogue scale
• Identification of 289 studies of peri-operative interventions for postoperative pain following laparoscopic cholecystectomy
• 121 studies included (Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Update 2006 Included References)
• 169 studies excluded (Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Update 2006 Excluded References)
• The most common reason for exclusion was that the study did not report pain scores (47 studies). (Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Update 2006 Reasons for Exclusion)

Study quality assessments, levels of evidence and grades of recommendation

Recommendations are graded according to the overall level of evidence (LoE) on which the recommendations are based, which is determined by the quality and source of evidence: (Levels of evidence and grades of recommendation in PROSPECT reviews (from 2006))

Click here for table of quality scores and levels of evidence for included procedure-specific studies:(Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Update 2006 Quality Scoring + Levels of Evidence)

Transferable evidence

Transferable evidence of analgesic efficacy from comparable procedures or evidence of other outcomes, such as adverse effects, has been included to support the procedure-specific evidence where this is insufficient.