Cover -- Dedication -- Title page -- Copyright page -- Contents -- Contributors -- Foreword -- Preface -- About the companion website -- PART I: The concept of evidence-based dermatology -- CHAPTER 1: The field and its boundaries -- Introduction -- What is special about dermatology? -- A vast array of clinical entities -- Extremely common disorders -- Large variations in terms of health-care organization -- Topical treatment may be possible -- Limitations of clinical research -- Disease rarity -- Patients' preferences -- The use of placebo in randomized control trials -- Long-term outcome of chronic disorders -- Self-control design -- The increasing role of industry-sponsored trials -- The limitations of systematic reviews -- Evidence-based medicine: where do we go from here? -- References -- CHAPTER 2: The rationale for evidence-based dermatology -- What is evidence-based dermatology? -- Definitions -- What evidence-based dermatology is not -- Problems with other sources of evidence -- Personal experience -- Expert opinion -- Uncontrolled data -- The process of evidence-based dermatology -- Step 1: asking an answerable structured question -- Step 2: searching for the best external information -- Step 3: sifting information for relevance and quality -- Step 4: applying the evidence back to the patient -- Step 5: recording the information for the future -- Conclusions -- References -- CHAPTER 3: The role of patient and public involvement in evidence-based dermatology -- Introduction -- The many benefits and roles of patient and public involvement in health care -- The skin shows: it matters psychologically and socially -- Education and information for self-care -- The role of patient support groups -- The rise of internet and social networking -- Patient and public involvement in the research process -- The role of patient support groups.

Cochrane systematic reviews -- Priority setting partnerships -- Clinical trials: development, delivery, and dissemination -- Summary -- Acknowledgments -- References -- CHAPTER 4: The Cochrane Skin Group -- Background -- The Cochrane Skin Group -- Types of Cochrane reviews -- Scope of the Cochrane Skin Group -- Editorial process: join the Cochrane Skin Group and publish a high-impact paper! -- Support offered by the Cochrane Skin Group editorial base -- Responsibilities of Cochrane Skin Group author teams -- How do review teams find trials? -- The Cochrane Skin Group Specialized Register -- The Cochrane Library -- The role of consumers -- Impact of our reviews -- Communicating with different audiences -- Co-publication -- Cochrane Skin Group satellites -- Contacting the Cochrane Skin Group editorial base -- References -- PART II: The critical appraisal toolbox -- CHAPTER 5: Formulating well-built clinical questions -- Introduction -- Tips for building well-built clinical questions -- The advantages of well-built clinical questions -- What factors are important in generating well-built questions in a dermatology consultation? -- References -- CHAPTER 6: Finding the best evidence -- References -- CHAPTER 7: The hierarchy of evidence -- References -- CHAPTER 8: Appraising systematic reviews and meta-analyses -- Introduction -- Asking a clear question -- Sources of evidence within a systematic review -- The hazards of "quick" searches -- Publication and selective reporting outcome bias -- Data abstraction -- Pooling results -- Interpretation of the data -- Overviews and network meta-analysis -- References -- CHAPTER 9: How to critically appraise a randomized controlled trial -- The place of randomized controlled trials -- Definitions of quality, validity, and bias -- How to tell a good dermatological randomized controlled trial from a bad one.

Quality criteria derived from research -- Additional empirical criteria -- References -- CHAPTER 10: Assessing and explaining the evidence on harms of medical interventions -- Introduction -- Data sources -- The limitation of randomized clinical trials -- The value of suspicion: case reports and case series -- Epidemiological studies: the most comprehensive source of data -- A trend toward changing the surveillance paradigm: proactive pharmacovigilance -- Back to the individual patient -- References -- CHAPTER 11: How to evaluate diagnostic tests -- Introduction -- Critical appraisal of diagnostic studies -- Quality of evidence -- Indices of test accuracy -- Applying evidence about a diagnostic test to the care of individual patients -- References -- CHAPTER 12: What makes a good case series? -- Introduction -- Methodology of case series -- Diagnosis -- Inclusion and exclusion criteria -- Informed consent -- Consecutive cases -- Natural course of the disease -- Dosages -- Outcome measures -- Patient perception -- Safety -- Conclusions -- Acknowledgments -- References -- CHAPTER 13: What makes a good prevalence survey? -- Introduction -- The importance of clear reporting -- Quality criteria -- Specification of the target population -- Employment of adequate sampling methods -- Adequate sample size -- Adequate response rate -- Information on nonresponders -- Valid and repeatable disease definition -- Reduction of observer bias -- Additional criteria -- Specification of inclusion criteria for the study population -- Information on studied individuals -- Measurement with valid instruments -- Correct application of epidemiological terms -- Confidence intervals or standard errors -- Other checklists and scales -- Conclusion -- References -- CHAPTER 14: Critical appraisal of pharmacoeconomic studies -- Introduction -- Cost analysis.

Cost-effectiveness analysis -- Cost-utility analysis -- Cost-benefit analysis -- Guidelines for critical appraisal of pharmacoeconomic studies -- Framework -- Data and methods -- Results and discussion -- References -- CHAPTER 15: Comparative effectiveness research: what it is and how to assess its quality -- Why do comparative effectiveness research? -- What is comparative effectiveness research? -- Methods in comparative effectiveness research -- Assessing the quality of comparative effectiveness research -- What makes a good randomized clinical effectiveness trial? -- What makes a good comparative effectiveness research observational study? -- References -- CHAPTER 16: Outcome measures -- Introduction -- What can we do with outcomes? -- Elaborate -- Evaluate -- Select -- Assess (measure) -- Analyze -- Report -- Criticize and use -- Outcomes in dermatology and future directions -- References -- CHAPTER 17: Where does qualitative research fit into evidence-based dermatology? -- Definitions -- Qualitative research and evidence-based medicine -- Measuring disease -- Behavioral effects of disease and treatment -- Stigmatization and coping -- Preferences and treatment adherence -- Communication skill and patient narratives -- Health-care models and organization -- Methods -- Critical appraisal and meta-analysis -- Final remarks -- References -- CHAPTER 18: Applying the evidence back to the patient -- Introduction -- How similar are the study participants to my patient? -- Trial participants are often different from clinic patients -- Groups are different from individuals -- Triumph of the aggregate -- Do the outcomes make sense to me? -- Take care in interpreting composite scales -- Sensitive scales amplify effects -- Too many scales and too many short-term studies -- Look for outcomes that are clinically important -- Magnitude of treatment effects.

How big? -- Number needed to treat -- Adverse events -- Trials are not a useful source of rare but serious side effects -- Limitations of aggregate data -- Communicating risks -- Decision-aid approaches to weighing up risks and benefits -- What are the patient's values? -- Values and belief models -- And if the treatment still does not work? -- Conclusions -- References -- PART III: The evidence -- SECTION 1 Common inflammatory skin diseases -- CHAPTER 19: Acne vulgaris -- Background -- Definition -- Incidence/prevalence -- Etiology/risk factors -- Prognosis -- Aims of treatment -- Relevant outcomes -- Search methods -- Questions -- Is there any evidence to support the routine use of skin cleansers and/or abrasives in the management of mild to moderate acne? -- What is the role of topical nonantibiotic agents in the treatment of mild primarily noninflammatory acne? -- What is the role of antibiotics in the management of acne vulgaris? -- What dose of oral antibiotics should be prescribed? -- For how long should antibiotic therapy be continued? -- What is the role of oral isotretinoin in the treatment of severe acne? -- References -- CHAPTER 20: Papulopustular rosacea -- Background -- Definition -- Incidence/prevalence -- Etiology/risk -- Prognosis -- Aims -- Outcomes -- Methods -- Questions -- What are the effects of systemic treatments? -- What are the effects of topical drugs? -- References -- CHAPTER 21: Perioral dermatitis -- Background -- Definition -- Incidence/prevalence -- Etiology -- Prognosis -- Aims of treatment -- Outcomes -- Methods of search -- Questions -- What are the effects of "zero therapy"? -- What are the effects of metronidazole? -- What are the effects of oral tetracyclines? -- What are the effects of topical antibiotics? -- What are the effects of nonfluorinated corticosteroids? -- Other treatment modalities -- Acknowledgments.

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