The Need for Clinical Judgment in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Lyme Disease (Report‪)‬

Introduction Clinical practice guidelines are now ubiquitous throughout the United States. The National Guidelines Clearing House, under the category "diseases," currently lists 2,126 separate guidelines on its website. (1) Clinical guidelines are intended to assist physicians in patient care by clearly communicating the results of the guideline committees' evaluation of available therapeutic options. However, the processes by which individual guidelines are constructed may be less clear, leading to disagreements between the issuing committee and the physicians who treat patients--physicians who may well be as experienced and knowledgeable as the guideline committee.