Methodological transparency of preoperative clinical practice guidelines for elective surgery. Systematic review.

Background: Clinical practice guidelines (CPG) are statements that provide recommendations regarding the approach to different diseases and aim to increase quality while decreasing the risk of complications in health care. Numerous guidelines in the field of perioperative care have been published in the previous decade but their methodological quality and transparency are relatively unknown.

Objective: To critically evaluate the transparency and methodological quality of published CPG in the preoperative assessment and management of adult patients undergoing elective surgery.