Study quality: A straight to the point guide to getting the most of out the studies you read - MMRU group discussion.

Monash Musculoskeletal Research Unit podcast

Episode 14 of the MMRU podcast is a @MonashMRU team discussion on study quality.

This is a conversation that will be really useful for clinicians who want some tips on assessing the quality of the studies that they read, undergraduate or postgraduate students who are learning core evidence-based practice skills and PhD students.

The conversation is led by MMRU member Tim Trevail who is a program director at Torrens University and a sports injury specialist at Complete Sports Care in Melbourne, Australia. Tim is joined by physiotherapist and PhD candidate Josh Naunton, physio and PhD candidate Pat Vallance and tendinopathy researcher and expert clinician Peter Malliaras.

The conversation covers sources of bias in study design, the role of placebo control, considerations for studies of the effectiveness of injections vs. exercise, why the sample size calculation matters and what it means and the real reason (statistically) why systematic reviews are useful. The goal of reading a study is to 'read the fine print' and know enough about the methods and findings to be able to make your own conclusions. This conversation will help you read the fine print.

Resources and links mentioned in the episode:

Oxford Centre for Evidence Based Medicine: Evidence hierarchy – mentioned by Peter

Evidence in Practice: A new series for clinicians. Steven Kamper, JOSPT

https://www.jospt.org/doi/full/10.2519/jospt.2018.0105

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Contact us and continue the discussion on Twitter....

@MonashMRU

Tim Trevail @Trevail

Josh Naunton @JoshNaunton

Peter Malliaras @DrPeteMalliaras

Pat Vallance @Pat_Vallance

Do you want to discuss your research or a research topic on the @MonashMRU podcast. Email [e-mail] or contact Luke via twitter @lukeperraton