Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Are guidelines a useful tool for improving outcomes in neurology?

A growing number of clinical practice guidelines are being developed for neurological diseases, and they have the potential to benefit patients, clinicians, policymakers and payers. However, the effectiveness of these guidelines has not been evaluated, so we do not yet know whether they improve patient outcomes in a real-world setting.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Grimshaw, J. M. et al. Effectiveness and efficiency of guideline dissemination and implementation strategies. Health Technol. Assess. 8, 6 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Chan, A. H. Y. et al. Effect of electronic adherence monitoring on adherence and outcomes in chronic conditions: a systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One 17, e0265715 (2022).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Kwan, J. & Sandercock, P. In-hospital care pathways for stroke. Cochrane Database Syst. Rev. 4, CD002924 (2004).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Trimarchi, L., Caruso, R., Magon, G., Odone, A. & Arrigoni, C. Clinical pathways and patient-related outcomes in hospital-based settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Acta Biomed. 92, e2021093 (2021).

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Setkowski, K., Boogert, K., Hoogendoorn, A. W., Gilissen, R. & van Balkom, A. J. L. M. Guidelines improve patient outcomes in specialised mental health care: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Acta Psychiatr. Scand. 144, 246–258 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Donnellan, C., Sweetman, S. & Shelley, E. Health professionals’ adherence to stroke clinical guidelines: a review of the literature. Health Policy 111, 245–263 (2013).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Osterberg, L. & Blaschke, T. Adherence to medication. N. Engl. J. Med. 353, 487–497 (2005).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Pereira, V. C., Silva, S. N., Carvalho, V. K. S., Zanghelini, F. & Barreto, J. O. M. Strategies for the implementation of clinical practice guidelines in public health: an overview of systematic reviews. Health Res. Policy Syst. 20, 13 (2022).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Guideline Production Group of the European Academy of Neurology et al. Guidelines should be guidelines: time to leave the terms “consensus” and “position” for other purposes. Eur. J. Neurol. 28, 2461–2466 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. El Baz, N. et al. Are the outcomes of clinical pathways evidence-based? A critical appraisal of clinical pathway evaluation research. J. Eval. Clin. Pract. 13, 920–929 (2007).

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maurizio A. Leone.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

M.A.L. and J.C. are co-chairs of the Guideline Production Group of the European Academy of Neurology.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Leone, M.A., Costa, J. Are guidelines a useful tool for improving outcomes in neurology?. Nat Rev Neurol 18, 447–448 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-022-00687-w

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-022-00687-w

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing