Arq. Bras. Cardiol. 2024; 121(3): e20240106
The Immense Challenge of Searching for the Best Evidence
This Short Editorial is referred by the Research article "Chronic Anticoagulation in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation and COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis".
To generate the best scientific evidence, it is crucial to follow rigorous research methods, use representative samples, apply appropriate statistical analyses, and ensure peer review in reputable scientific publications. Transparency and replicability are also key. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses aim to summarize a body of available evidence for a given question and provide a high-quality answer.
New situations add variables not previously analyzed, and the COVID-19 pandemic has raised big questions. The urgency to find effective treatments and develop vaccines has encouraged a global mobilization of the scientific community. Contributing factors were: the global health emergency, international mobilization, priority funding sources, greater availability of data networks, and high technology, which stimulated a real race in search of answers. This convergence of factors resulted in an explosion of publications, seeking to better understand the pathophysiology, treatment options, prevention measures, and socioeconomic impacts. As would be expected, in the rush, most of the publications were of poor quality, some of which generated misinformation with serious consequences, as many of these had great repercussions in the media. During the course of the pandemic, numerous guidelines were generated and changed. There were notable discrepancies between different guidelines regarding recommendations on the management of COVID-19 in Brazil.
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