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Review articles collate and summarize the available information about a particular topic, in contrast to reports of original data. Review articles have great practical importance because clinicians often use them as guides for clinical decisions. This use highlights the importance of ensuring that reviews are systematic, include all relevant data, and are not overly influenced by the opinions and biases of the authors. Thus, review articles should specify the methods used to search for, select, synthesize, and summarize the information. Some reviews employ meta-analysis, statistical techniques that combine quantitative results from independent studies. (See , Study Design and Statistics, Meta-analysis.) Less