AAPS Podium Presentations-Has the Level of Evidence Changed over the Past Decade?

Area of Science:

• Plastic Surgery
• Medical Education
• Evidence-Based Medicine

Background:

• The quality and quantity of evidence in plastic surgery literature have improved.
• Focus has shifted towards higher Levels of Evidence (LOE).
• Trends in LOE for scientific meeting presentations remain under-examined.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze trends in the Level of Evidence (LOE) of studies presented at the American Association of Plastic Surgeons annual meeting.
• To assess the quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) presented.

Main Methods:

• Hand search of podium presentation abstracts from 2009-2019.
• LOE assigned using American Society of Plastic Surgeons guidelines.
• RCTs evaluated using the Modified Consolidated Standard of Reporting Trials checklist.

Main Results:

• 441 studies analyzed; median LOE was 3.
• Non-significant improvement in mean LOE over time (P=0.09).
• Increase in Level 2 studies (P=0.589) and RCTs (P=0.717).
• Level 1 studies were rare (0.91%) and of fair quality (median score 8/12).
• 72% of abstracts were published with a mean lag time of 422 days.

Conclusions:

• A favorable trend exists in mean LOE, Level 2 studies, and RCTs over time.
• Research meeting attendance is crucial for accessing timely information due to publication lag.
• Continued focus on improving the quality of evidence presented at scientific meetings is warranted.