Searching for evidence-based medicine in wound care: an introduction

During the last 10 years, wound care knowledge and treatment options, as well as the amount of information in the literature pertaining to wound and patient treatment options, have expanded rapidly. As a result, clinicians need to be able to review the existing literature with knowledge of the steps involved in evidence-based medicine. By identifying search strategies to improve information retrieval, time can be saved, new knowledge can be obtained, and with an understanding of clinical experience and patient-centered concerns, the best evidence for decision making can be utilized. The information retrieved can be categorized according to the level of evidence and clinical practice guidelines (documents in which an expert panel has reviewed the evidence and interpreted it for patient care) can be measured by the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) Instrument. Learning how to find and interpret the literature not only enhances clinical decision making, but it also may inspire additional inquiries that will add to the existing evidence base.