The advantages of being called NICE: a systematic review of journal article titles using the acronym for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

摘要

OBJECTIVE: To describe the use of NICE, the acronym for the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, as both an adjective and noun in peer-reviewed journal article titles. DESIGN: Systematic review of titles retrieved by electronic database searches. DATA SOURCES: Ovid databases (MEDLINE, All EBM Reviews, EMBASE, ERIC, CINAHL and PsycINFO) covering the formation of NICE in 1999 to February 2008. REVIEW METHODS: Independent review of eligible titles by both authors and resolution of disagreements based on consideration of full text articles. RESULTS: 2274 articles were retrieved that included reference to NICE in their titles. Of these, 167 (7.3%) used NICE as an adjective, most commonly in conjunction with the terms 'work', 'not so' (NICE), 'nasty', 'mess' and 'try'. CONCLUSIONS: The work of NICE has been widely referenced in peer-reviewed journal article titles, sometimes with apparent humorous intent when used as an adjective. Well-chosen names may increase the recognizability of public health organizations and help to communicate their roles.