Quality appraisal of guidelines on umbilical cord prolapse with AGREE II: a systematic review

Abstract

Background: Umbilical cord prolapse is an obstetric emergency that warrants urgent intervention. Although the incidence is low, it carries a high rate of fetal morbidity and mortality. Quality appraisal of well- developed practice guidelines provides clinicians with a framework for good clinical practice. Objective: To assess the quality of clinical practice guidelines on umbilical cord prolapse using AGREE II instrument-2010. Search strategy: A systematic review employing the principles of PRISMA 2020 was done to identify suitable practice guidelines available in digital databases from inception till 2021. Selection criteria: Practice guidelines on management of umbilical cord prolapse in English which have rigorous methodology of development and is between 2010-2021 were selected for the appraisal. Data collection and analysis: Selected guidelines were appraised utilizing the AGREE-II - 2010 instrument Results: Three practice guidelines were fulfilled the selection criteria. Two of the three guidelines were assigned sufficient scores based on the domains for quality appraisal, though they require further modifications. Conclusions: Practice guidelines on management of umbilical cord prolapse developed by the RCOG and RCPI achieved sufficient scores to be recommended for use in clinical practice. Professionals should provide patient care based on practice points tailored to patients’ characteristics and resource availability. Keywords: umbilical cord prolapse, guidelines, clinical practice guidelines, quality appraisal Tweetable abstract: AGREE II was used to assess the quality of CPGs on umbilical CP, of which RCOG and RCPI guidelines were recommended.