Journal impact factor is associated with PRISMA endorsement, but not with the methodological quality of low back pain systematic reviews: a methodological review

We aimed to examine systematically the available evidence on risk factors of low back pain (LBP) in athletes. We performed search without language restriction in PubMed, Ovid, Google Scholar, Scopus, and CINAHL. Longitudinal studies that examined possible risk factors of LBP in athletes were included in this systematic review. Based on methodological quality of studies, a best-evidence synthesis was conducted. Seven longitudinal studies were included, four of which had high methodological quality. Results showed that previous LBP, decreased lumbar flexion, and decreased lumbar extension are positively associated with LBP. There was moderate evidence for hip flexor tightness and high body weight as a risk factor. We found insufficient evidence for association between forward bending, previous injury, and amount of training per week, active years, age, and sex with LBP. In conclusion this study would provide a list of risk factors for LBP in athletes, though it showed a strong evidence for only a few including decrease lumbar flexion or extension, previous LBP, and high body weight. This review indicated a high heterogeneity of study characteristics including assessed risk factors and statistical techniques might limit the quality of evidence.

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Journal impact factor and methodological quality of surgical randomized controlled trials: an empirical study

Langenbeck s Archives of Surgery ◽

10.1007/s00423-017-1593-6 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 402 (7) ◽

pp. 1015-1022 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Usama Ahmed Ali ◽

Beata M. M. Reiber ◽

Joren R. ten Hove ◽

Pieter C. van der Sluis ◽

Hein G. Gooszen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Empirical Study ◽

Impact Factor ◽

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Journal Impact Factor ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Journal Impact

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Is the methodological quality of trials on spinal manipulative therapy for low-back pain improving?

International Journal of Osteopathic Medicine ◽

10.1016/j.ijosm.2012.02.001 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 37-52 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sidney M. Rubinstein ◽

Caroline B. Terwee ◽

Michiel R. de Boer ◽

Maurits W. van Tulder

Keyword(s):

Low Back Pain ◽

Back Pain ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Spinal Manipulative Therapy ◽

Low Back ◽

Manipulative Therapy

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Tuina-Focused Integrative Chinese Medical Therapies for Inpatients with Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2012/578305 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2012 ◽

pp. 1-14 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Ling Jun Kong ◽

Min Fang ◽

Hong Sheng Zhan ◽

Wei An Yuan ◽

Jiang Hui Pu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Low Back Pain ◽

Back Pain ◽

Functional Status ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Preliminary Evidence ◽

Low Back ◽

Medical Therapies ◽

Meta Analyses

Objective. To evaluate the effectiveness of Tuina-focused integrative Chinese medical therapies (TICMT) on inpatients with low back pain (LBP).Methods. 6 English and Chinese databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of TICMT for in-patients with LBP. The methodological quality of the included RCTs was assessed based on PEDro scale. And the meta-analyses of TICMT for LBP on pain and functional status were conducted.Results. 20 RCTs were included. The methodological quality of the included RCTs was poor. The meta-analyses' results showed that TICMT had statistically significant effects on pain and functional status, especially Tuina plus Chinese herbal medicine (standardised mean difference, SMD: 1.17; 95% CI 0.75 to 1.60 on pain; SMD: 1.31; 95% CI 0.49 to 2.14 on functional status) and Tuina plus acupuncture (SMD: 0.94; 95% CI 0.38 to 1.50 on pain; SMD: 0.53; 95% CI 0.21 to 0.85 on functional status). But Tuina plus moxibustion or hot pack did not show significant improvements on pain. And the long-term evidence of TICMT was far from sufficient.Conclusions. The preliminary evidence from current studies suggests that TICMT might be effective complementary and alternative treatments for in-patients with LBP. However, the poor methodological quality of the included RCTs means that high-quality RCTs with long follow-up are warranted.

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