So sometimes it’s obvious (the title says “: Randomised Controlled Trial” or “Systematic Review …”) but sometimes it’s just a bit tricky to work out what type of study you’re dealing with.

The very clever folks at the AHRQ also had that – and the inconsistency of how researchers name things – and so developed an exceptionally handy flow-chart to the Naming Of Things:

Hartling L, Bond K, Harvey K, Santaguida PL, Viswanathan M, Dryden DM. Developing and Testing a Tool for the Classification of Study Designs in Systematic Reviews of Interventions and Exposures [Internet]. AHRQ Methods for Effective Health Care. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2010 Dec. Report No.: 11-EHC007-EF. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK52670/)