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Therapeutic Models for Children and Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria: Overview with Focus on Austrian Treatment Reality Young people whose experienced gender differs from their aligned sex are increasingly visible in public life as well as in the medical care system. For those children and adolescents, who can experience a high degree of suffering because of the discrepancy between aligned sex and desired gender, treatment guidelines have been developed. In this short narrative review, classification options, epidemiological data, health-care data and treatment guidelines are presented with an emphasis on the Austrian health care system.

The development of evidence-based guidelines is an interdisciplinary process in which methodologists play an important role. In addition to creating new or assessing existing systematic reviews as a basis for evidence-based decision making, methodologists can support the entire development process. Due to the increasing complexity of methods and the information overload of available publications, cooperation between the involved experts (especially clinicians and methodologists, but also patient representatives) is essential in order to develop reliable, acceptable and practical guidelines. This article looks at eight key points of the guideline development process (transparency, conflicts of interest, composition of guideline development group, establishing evidence foundation, development and formulation of recommendations, external review and updating) from the perspective of methodologists, and highlights problems, challenges and solution approaches. The earliest possible involvement of methodologists, a clear and a--for non-methodologists--understandable presentation of the best available evidence, the integration of methodologists in the creation and formulation of recommendations (systematic, evidence-based decision-making process) and cooperation between the participating experts are essential to improve the development process of evidence-based guidelines., (Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier GmbH.)

Background: Evidence-based information materials about the pros and cons of cancer screening are important sources for men and women to decide for or against cancer screening. The aim of this paper was to compare recommendations from different cancer institutions in German-speaking countries (Austria, Germany, and Switzerland) regarding screening for breast, cervix, colon, and prostate cancer and to assess the quality and development process of patient information materials., Methods: Relevant information material was identified through web searches and personal contact with cancer institutions. To achieve our objective, we employed a qualitative approach. The quality of 22 patient information materials was analysed based on established guidance by Bunge et al. In addition, we conducted guided interviews about the process of developing information materials with decision-makers of cancer institutes., Results: Overall, major discrepancies in cancer screening recommendations exist among the Austrian, German, and Swiss cancer institutes. Process evaluation revealed that crucial steps of quality assurance, such as assembling a multi-disciplinary panel, assessing conflicts of interest, or transparency regarding funding sources, have frequently not been undertaken. All information materials had substantial quality deficits in multiple areas. Three out of four institutes issued information materials that met fewer than half of the quality criteria., Conclusion: Most patient information materials of cancer institutes in German-speaking countries are fraught with substantial deficits and do not provide an objective source for patients to be able to make an informed decision for or against cancer screening., (Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier GmbH.)