Primer on clinical practice guidelines.

Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) are valuable tools for health care providers and support evidence-based medicine (EBM). Many organizations, including medical associations and government-affiliated agencies, develop and publish guidelines using varying methods. Unfortunately, many guidelines are not appropriately developed and certain recommendations are not based on the best available evidence. Recent efforts by EBM advocates are contributing to the improved quality of CPGs and more tools are becoming available to promote high-quality guideline development and use. This article describes the guideline development process and associated concerns and the advances in the field of CPGs. Tools to access and evaluate guidelines are also provided. Health care professionals equipped with an understanding of the process of guideline creation and tools for evaluation can appropriately utilize guidelines to improve patient care.