Earlier, as Jörg Meerpohl was still working as a pediatrician, he witnessed time and again situations in which physicians with different treatments for the same disease recommended. “At the time, I asked myself, what kind of therapy is it better now?”, he says. “And when is one better than the other, why not make then all that way?”
Today, the sea Pohl heads the German branch of the Cochrane Collaboration. To be part of his Team of biologists, pharmacists, statisticians, computer scientists, food scientists as well as experts for clinical studies. They all work on a daily basis through mountains of medical information, from which they distil together the essence: What really helps? And why? Their findings are crucial in ensuring that patients receive the most effective treatment.
Quality control of therapies
Around 37,000 scientists around the world working for the Cochrane Collaboration, named after the British physician Archibald Cochrane. Systematically check the quality of therapies and the search for Evidence from scientific studies. Sea Pohl and his colleagues summarize their findings in “Reviews”, which often feed into the so-called guidelines are systematically developed AIDS for Doctors. Not infrequently, treatments that have long been considered “good” have better soft. So for example a heart weak patients, it was frequently recommended to take care of himself. However, Recently a Cochrane Review was able to show that the most Affected should continue to engage in sports. Your health and your quality of life increased when they moved. Another impressive example: In the case of osteoarthritis of the knee doctors believed for many years, the lavage of the joint, with a little bit of tissue is scraped off, which is an advantage. However, this Belief proved to be wrong, because in comparison to sham operations, no significant difference showed. To know for knee patients is hugely important, because this procedure can save you.
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