Value and limitations of clinical practice guidelines in neonatology

Given the overwhelming size of the neonatal literature, clinicians must rely upon expert panels such as the Committee on Fetus and Newborn in the USA and the National Institute for Healthcare and Excellence in the UK for guidance. Guidelines developed by expert panels are not equivalent to evidence-based medicine and are not rules, but do provide evidence-based recommendations (when possible) and at minimum expert consensus reports. The standards used to develop evidence-based guidelines differ among expert panels. Clinicians must be able judge the quality of evidence from an expert panel, and decide whether a recommendation applies to their neonatal intensive care unit or infant under their care. Furthermore, guidelines become outdated within a few years and must be revised or discarded. Clinical practice guidelines should not always be equated with standard of care. However, they do provide a framework for determining acceptable care. Clinicians do not need to follow guidelines if the recommendations are not applicable to their population or infant. However, if a plan of care is not consistent with apparently applicable clinical practice guidelines, the medical record should include an explanation for the deviation from the relevant practice guideline.