It is possible that through such activities some contributors have received income related to treatments discussed in this guideline. A number of mechanisms are in place to minimize the potential for producing biased recommendations due to conflicts of interest. The guideline has been extensively reviewed by members of APA as well as by representatives from related fields. Contributors and reviewers have all been asked to base their recommendations on an objective evaluation of the available evidence. This potential bias is then discussed with the work group chair and the chair of the Steering Committee on Practice Guidelines.
Further action depends on the assessment of the potential bias.
This practice guideline was approved in December 1996 and was published in May 1997.