KimberlyFrom the American Thyroid Association regarding their guidelines:
“The balance between benefits and risks, quality of evidence, applicability, and certainty of the baseline risk are all considered in judgments about the strength of recommendations (7). Grading the quality of the evidence takes into account study design, study quality, consistency of results, and directness of the evidence. The strength of a recommendation is indicated as a strong recommendation (for or against) that applies to most patients in most circumstances with benefits of action clearly outweighing the risks and burdens (or vice versa), or a weak recommendation or a suggestion that may not be appropriate for every patient, depending on context, patient values, and preferences. The quality of the evidence is indicated as low-quality evidence, moderate-quality evidence, or high-quality evidence, based on consistency of results between studies and study design, limitations, and the directness of the evidence. In several instances, the evidence was insufficient to recommend for or against a test or a treatment, and the task force made a statement labeled “no recommendation.” Table 1 describes the criteria to be met for each rating category. Each recommendation is preceded by a description of the evidence and, is followed in some cases by a remarks section including technical suggestions on issues such as dosing and monitoring.”