American College of Cardiology

Though its philosophical origins are said to date back to mid-19th century Paris, evidence-based medicine has been defined in more modern times as "the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients. The practice of evidence based medicine means integrating individual clinical expertise with the best available external clinical evidence from systematic research." (BMJ, 13 Jan 96, Sackett, David L.).

Even for the most scholarly of practicing physicians, attempting to stay current with the abundance of clinical research evidence presently available is a daunting task. And while clinical experience and expertise is critical, its efficacy is strengthened with evidence from systematic research. In addition, a physician with knowledge of clinical evidence alone cannot deliver supportive, compassionate care without clinical skill accrued through years of experience.

For nearly 20 years, the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association have partnered to develop guidelines for evidence-based cardiovascular care. Our guidelines development manual methodologies have evolved over the years as we learned first hand the complexities of combining research findings and clinical judgment to create the best possible recommendations for patient care. Despite this experience, guideline writing groups still frequently face new challenges that result in a reassessment and modification of our policies. Additionally, we monitor the international literature on guidelines development to compare our strategies with other rigorous efforts. As such, our methodologies are frequently modified and expanded to reflect our commitment to providing a scientifically sound structure for guideline development.

Today, our commitment to ensuring high quality care for patients with cardiovascular disease remains the driving force behind our evidence-based efforts.