Skip to Main Content

EBM: Evidence Based Medicine

Appraising the Evidence

While you're the only one who can determine if an article is relevant to your research question, you can employ questions, checklists, and review tools can help you decide if the research is valid, if the results are interpretable, and how applicable the results are. 

Is the Study Valid? Are the Results Significant?
  • Is there a clear, defined research question?
  • Was the study "blinded?"
  • Was the test evaluated?
  • Are the methods clear?
  • Can the study be reproduced?
  • What were the outcome measures?
  • In systematic review, are the studies consistent?
  • Are the results relevant to your question?
  • Are the results precise?
  • Are the results statistically significant?
  • In systematic review, are individual studies considered for validity?
  • Are the individual studies consistent?

CASP Checklists

The Critical Apprisal Skills Programme, out of the UK, has a set of critical appraisal tools on their website, which are designed to be used when reading and appraising research. These include tools for Systematic Reviews, Randomised Controlled Trials, Cohort Studies, Case Control Studies, and Qualitative studies.

Appraisal Tools