Work

Appraisal of guidelines and variations in recommendations on drug therapy for invasive aspergillosis prevention and treatment

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Background: In recent years, many guidelines related to aspergillosis have been published worldwide. However, no studies have applied assessment tools to systematically evaluate the quality of these guidelines. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the quality of clinical practice guidelines and compared their recommendations related to drug therapy for the prevention and treatment of invasive aspergillosis. Methods: Electronic databases, guideline development organizations, and professional society websites were searched to identify clinical practice guidelines for invasive aspergillosis published between 1 January 2013, and 12 September 2023. The Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II instrument was used to evaluate the quality of the guidelines. Recommendations for the drug prevention and treatment of invasive aspergillosis were extracted and descriptively analyzed. Results: Among the 18 included clinical practice guidelines, the median scores and interquartile range for each AGREE II domain were: scope and purpose, 76.39% (69.1%, 80.21%); stakeholder involvement, 59.72% (50.35%, 67.02%); rigor of development, 64.58% (44.4%, 72.27%); clarity and presentation, 81.25% (68.06%, 91.32%); applicability, 41.67% (36.46%, 47.92%); and editorial independence, 76.05% (50%, 87.5%). Voriconazole and isavuconazole are recommended as first-line therapy for invasive aspergillosis currently. Posaconazole remains the first choice for invasive aspergillosis prophylaxis in patients with hematological malignancies. Conclusion: The development processes and reporting of invasive aspergillosis -related clinical practice guidelines varied and their quality requires improvement. The guideline recommendations have changed since the approval of isavuconazole.

Source: Frontiers in Pharmacology

DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1443487

Authors: Jing Wang, Ju Sun, Da-Wei Yang, Hai-Shan Wang, Wei Meng, Hong-Yan Li

Institutions: Yuhuangding Hospital, Qingdao University, Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University

Language: English

Topic: Antifungal resistance and susceptibility

Subfield: Infectious Diseases

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,801