The IAO Systematic Review Award is awarded every year to the best articles in systematic review, including meta-analyses, published in the International Archives of Otorhinolaryngology, which seeks to highlight articles that form the foundations and concepts of universal knowledge.[1] In 2020, it was awarded to the three best systematic and/or literature reviews that were published in the journal in the year 2019.[2] [3] [4] This award was established to encourage the submission of high-quality systematic review articles.

Systematic review is a method of evidence synthesis that critically assesses and interprets all relevant research available regarding a particular issue, area of knowledge, or phenomenon of interest. Statistical methods (meta-analyses) are usually included in the analysis and synthesis of results, allowing the increase of the sample size and accuracy of the assessed outcomes.[5] Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are at the top of the pyramid of evidence. They provide the highest level of evidence to verify the effectiveness of interventions,[6] help health professionals to stay up to date with the latest developments, provide evidence for decision making, enable evaluation of the risks and benefits of interventions, provide inputs for the development of assistance guidelines, and provide information on prior studies for potential funding sources for new research.[6] We suggest the use of guidelines for the elaboration and conduction of a systematic review using well-defined and explicit methods aimed at minimizing biases.[5] [7]

The competing works must be published in editions 1 to 4 in the year prior to the one when the award takes place. The rules for manuscript submission are available at http://www.thieme.com/iao. The judging commission, which is comprised of members of the editorial board, will be coordinated by the chief editor of this journal. Articles will be judged based on scientific merit, including originality, consistency, significance, and impact. The winning authors and co-authors will receive certificates for their work. The best systematic reviews will be announced in the last edition of each volume of the following publication year, thus providing enough time to accumulate citations needed for analyses.

With this effort, we wish to honor and show our appreciation to the deserving authors and encourage new talents in international otorhinolaryngological research with a commitment to stimulate education and technological development through research and training.

We are pleased to announce the following exceptional studies worth mentioning:

Klein A, Ovnat-Tamir S, Marom T, Gluck O, Rabinovics N, Shemesh S. Fish Bone Foreign Body: The Role of Imaging. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2019 Jan;23(1):110-115. doi: 10.1055/s-0038-1673631

Dokania V, Rajguru A, Mayashankar V, Mukherjee I, Jaipuria B, Shere D. Palatal Schwannoma: An Analysis of 45 Literature Reports and of an Illustrative Case. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2019 Jul;23(3):e360-e370. doi: 10.1055/s-0039-1692635

Fernandes IA, Armond ACV, Falci SGM. The Effectiveness of the Cold Therapy (cryotherapy) in the Management of Inflammatory Parameters after Removal of Mandibular Third Molars: A Meta-Analysis. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2019 Apr;23(2):221-228. doi: 10.1055/s-0039-1677755


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Conflict of Interests
The authors have no conflict of interests to declare.

References
1 Jotz GP, Bittencourt AG, Montefusco AM. Award-Winning Research - IAO 2019. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2019; 23 (04) e373-e374 DOI: 10.1055/s-0039-1700504.
2 Klein A, Ovnat-Tamir S, Marom T, Gluck O, Rabinovics N, Shemesh S. Fish Bone Foreign Body: The Role of Imaging. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2019; 23 (01) 110-115 DOI: 10.1055/s-0038-1673631.
3 Dokania V, Rajguru A, Mayashankar V, Mukherjee I, Jaipuria B, Shere D. Palatal Schwannoma: An Analysis of 45 Literature Reports and of an Illustrative Case. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2019; 23 (03) e360-e370 DOI: 10.1055/s-0039-1692635.
4 Fernandes IA, Armond ACV, Falci SGM. The Effectiveness of the Cold Therapy (cryotherapy) in the Management of Inflammatory Parameters after Removal of Mandibular Third Molars: A Meta-Analysis. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2019; 23 (02) 221-228 DOI: 10.1055/s-0039-1677755.
5 Ministério da Saúde (BR). Diretrizes Metodológicas: Elaboração de Revisão Sistemática e Metanálise de Ensaios Clínicos Randomizados [Methodological guideline: development of systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials] [Internet]. Brasilia - DF: Ministério da Saúde; 2015. [cited 2020 Sep 22]. 92 p. Available from: http://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/publicacoes/diretrizes_metodologicas_ensaio_clinico_randomizado_1edicao.pdf
6 Miranda VSG, Marcolino MAZ, Rech RS, Barbosa LR, Fischer GB. Evidence-based speech therapy: the role of systematic revisions. CoDAS 2019; 31 (02) e20180167 DOI: 10.1590/2317-1782/20182018167.
7 Higgins JPT, Thomas J, Chandler J. , et al , Eds. Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions version 6.1 (updated September 2020) [Internet]. Cochrane; 2020. [cited 2020 Sep 22]. Available from www.training.cochrane.org/handbook

Address for correspondence
Prof. Geraldo Pereira Jotz, MD, PhD
Departamento de Ciências Morfológicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
Avenida Paulo Gama 110, Farroupilha, Porto Alegre, RS, 90040-060
Brazil
Email: iaorl@iaorl.org