Effect of high flow oxygen on mortality in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients in prehospital setting: randomised controlled trial.

Critical Appraisal of the Literature

Students must critically review the following journal article:

Austin MA, Wills KE, Blizzard L, Walters EH, Wood-Baker R. Effect of high flow oxygen on mortality in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients in prehospital setting: randomised controlled trial. BMJ 2010; 341:c5462

In completing assessment task 1, you must address each of the following criteria:

Journal and Article Details
- Title of journal, volume number, date, month and page numbers
- Is the title of the article representative of the content?
- Who were the authors of this article?
- What are their qualifications?
- Are they well qualified in this field?

Abstract
- Is the abstract specific, representative of the article, and in the correct form?

Introduction
- What is the research problem/field?
- What is the objective/hypothesis/research question of the study?
- Is there a literature review included in the article?
- Are the articles recent?
- How thorough do you consider the literature review?
- Does the literature review justify the purpose of this study?
- If there is no/or a minimal literature review, how do they present the background information for the topic? Do you feel it has been appropriately canvassed? Why/ why not?

Method
- What type of study design does this study use?
- Is the study design and methods appropriate for the purposes of the study?
- Is the study design clearly outlined?
- What is the strength of evidence of this study design?
- How did they select their subjects?
- What was the population being studied?
- Did the subjects represent this population? Include considerations such as sample size and age, gender, ethnicity etc. where appropriate.
- Are outcome measures stated?
- Are the outcome measures appropriate to the stated purpose/objectives and study design? How was the data collected?
- Are the statistical analyses identified?
- Have the methods been stated clearly enough for you to replicate this study if you wished to do so?
- Was ethics approval necessary and if so, was it obtained?

Results
- What were the major findings?
- Are the results adequately and clearly described?
- Is the description of the results appropriate to the study?

Discussion
- Is all of the discussion relevant? Explain.
- Is the discussion based on the results stated?
- Has the author been objective in their discussion of the topic?
- What were the limitations identified by the authors?
Implications
- Will you be able to generalise the outcomes from the study setting to your setting?
- Who might benefit from these findings?

Conclusions
- Is the conclusion based on the data presented and the subsequent discussion?

Presentation
- Structure: overall assignment, paragraph and sentence structure
- Content: thoughtful review of the article, demonstrate a good understanding of the components of the literature
- Spelling, grammar, punctuation
- Format: no less than 11 point font using Arial, Times New Roman or Helvetica. Adherence to the word limit