First Annual Report to Congress on High-Priority Evidence Gaps for Clinical Preventive Services - IV

Table of Contents

IV. Major Activities of the USPSTF in 2010–2011

The USPSTF holds three in-person meetings a year. The focus of these 2-day meetings is on reviewing evidence, deliberating on recommendations, prioritizing preventive services topics for consideration, and updating Task Force methods and processes. These meetings are also used to provide Task Force members with updates on the work of the CPSTF and dissemination and implementation activities. Task Force members also work throughout the year in small groups via conference calls and electronic communications. These small groups include workgroups for each topic, which are convened at the research plan development stage and continue through the release of the final Recommendation Statement, and standing workgroups for issues such as the prioritization of topics and improvement of methods. This year, the Task Force published a new paper outlining methodological issues in key preventive service areas for older adults.

During the past 12 months, the USPSTF published five final Recommendation Statements (Table 2). This total is less than in previous years due to the decision by the USPSTF to begin the new process of posting all draft recommendations for public comment. All five of these recommendations were first shared with the public as draft recommendations. Additionally, this year the USPSTF published four other draft recommendations for public comment (Falls Prevention in Older Adults, Counseling to Promote a Healthy Diet and Physical Activity for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Adults, Counseling to Prevent Skin Cancer, and Screening for Hearing Loss in Older Adults). By the end of 2011, the USPSTF plans to release an additional four draft recommendations for public comment and two additional final Recommendation Statements. As this new process becomes well established, the Task Force expects to again publish 10 to 12 final Recommendation Statements each year.

 Table 2: Final Recommendation Statements Published By the USPSTF, September 2010 to October 2011

Topic Grade Specific Recommendations
Ocular Prophylaxis for Gonococcal Ophthalmia Neonatorum A The USPSTF recommends prophylactic ocular topical medication for all newborns for the prevention of gonococcal ophthalmia neonatorum.
Screening for Bladder Cancer I The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for bladder cancer in asymptomatic adults.
Screening for Osteoporosis B The USPSTF recommends screening for osteoporosis in women ages 65 years or older and in younger women whose fracture risk is equal to or greater than that of a 65-year-old white woman who has no additional risk factors.
I The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for osteoporosis in men.
Screening for Testicular Cancer D The USPSTF recommends against screening for testicular cancer in adolescent or adult males.
Screening for Visual Impairment in Children Ages 1–5 Years B The USPSTF recommends vision screening for all children at least once between the ages of 3 and 5 years, to detect the presence of amblyopia or its risk factors.
I The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of vision screening in children younger than age 3 years.

While establishing this new process for completing their recommendations, the members of the USPSTF continued working on a full portfolio of topics.

To review a complete listing of all current USPSTF specific recommendations, please go to Appendix C.

 

Current as of: December 2013
Internet Citation: First Annual Report to Congress on High-Priority Evidence Gaps for Clinical Preventive Services - IV. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. December 2011.