IAO Systematic Review Award 2021.

The IAO Systematic Review Award is awarded every year to the best articles in systematic review, including meta-analyses, published in the International Archives of Otorhinolaryngology (IAO) that seeks to highlight articles that form the foundations and concepts of universal knowledge. 1 In 2021, it was awarded to the three best systematic and/or literature reviews that were published in the journal in the year 2020 ( Table 1 ). 2 3 4 This award was established to encourage the submission of high-quality systematic review articles.

Table 1

Description of the best studies IAO Systematic Review Award 2021

Place	Author, year	Title	Country	Objective	Issue	DOI
1 st	Gore, 2 2020	Lemierre Syndrome: A Meta-analysis	United States	1) To perform a meta-analysis on outcomes and treatment of Lemierre syndrome; and 2) to evaluate the effect of anticoagulation in Lemierre syndrome on vessel recanalization and on mortality.	24(3):e379-e385.	10.1055/s-0039-3402433
2 nd	Parilli-Troconis et al., 3 2020	COVID-19 Infection and Its Influence in Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery	Spain, Venezuela, United States	This review aims to summarize the available diagnostic tools and current guidelines to safely assist patients while limiting the exposure of otolaryngologists during this pandemic.	24(4):e527-e534.	10.1055/s-0040-1715586
3 rd	Hojaij et al., 4 2020	Head and Neck Practice in the COVID-19 Pandemics Today: A Rapid Systematic Review	Brazil	To provide an easy access to and a trustful review of the main aspects that have changed in the head and neck surgery and otorhinolaryngology practice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.	24(4):e518-e526.	10.1055/s-0040-1715506

Systematic review is a method of evidence synthesis that critically assesses and interprets all relevant research available regarding a particular issue, area of knowledge, or phenomenon of interest. Statistical methods (meta-analysis) are usually included in the analysis and synthesis of results, allowing the increase of the sample size and accuracy of the assessed outcomes. 5 Systematic reviews and meta-analysis are at the top of the pyramid of evidence. They provide the highest level of evidence to verify the effectiveness of interventions, help health professionals to stay up to date with latest developments, provide evidence for decision making, enable evaluation of the risks and benefits of interventions, provide inputs for assistance guidelines development, and provide information on prior studies for potential funding sources for new research. 1 We suggest the use of guidelines for elaboration and conduction of systematic review using well-defined and explicit methods aimed at minimizing biases. 5 6

The competing works must be published in editions 1 to 4 in the year before the award. The rules for manuscript submission are available at http://www.thieme.com/iao . The judging commission, comprising of members of the editorial board, will be coordinated by the chief editor of this journal. Articles will be judged based on scientific merit, including originality, consistency, significance, and impact. The winning authors and co-authors will receive certificates for their work. The best systematic reviews will be announced in the last edition of each volume of the following publication year, thus providing enough time to accumulate citations needed for analyses.

With this effort, we wish to honor and show our appreciation to the deserving authors, and encourage new talents in international otorhinolaryngological research with a commitment to stimulate education and technological development through research and training.

We are pleased to announce the studies IAO Systematic Review Award 2021 , as shown in Table 1 .