The experimental appraisal instrument: A brief overview

Background Recently, there has been a great influx in experimental research to assess the health effects of nanoparticles/materials/fibers. Currently, there is no structured methodology to assess the methodological quality of the reported studies. Objective This article reports an experimental appraisal instrument with the goal to critically assess experimental studies. Methods A search of electronic databases was conducted to examine prior work on the subject and to extract the components of such an instrument. Results The electronic search revealed no major instrument designed to evaluate experimental strategies on health effects of nanoparticles/materials/fibers. An experimental appraisal instrument was developed and was patterned after the Epidemiological Appraisal Instrument reported by Genaidy and LeMasters (2006). Conclusions The validity and reliability of such an instrument will be reported in future work. (c) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.