How to find systematic reviews

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How to find systematic reviews

• Presented By Hojjat Salmasian

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Multiple methods

• Online and offline resources
• Journals, databases, specialized in the matter,
  and those not specialized
• No approach is proved to result in ALL the
  available evidence,
• Approaches being refined regularly

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Our method

• Here, we recommend a multiple-approach solution
  a combination of methods suggested by the others
• We break the process down to several steps as
  follows

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Step One Cochrane Library

• CDSR (Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews)
• DARE (Database of Abstracts of Reviews of
  Effectiveness) and HTA (Health Technology
  Assessment database)
• NHS Center for Reviews and Dissemination offers
  CDSR abstracts, as well DARE and HTA, free of
  charge

Find related links here http//ssrc.tums.ac.ir/La
unch.asp
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Example 1

• Try to find all systematic reviews about the
  antibiotic prevention for hernia repair via OVID
• Try to find related information from DARE via OVID

Suggested search strategy 1 antibiotic.ti. 2
hernia.ti. 3 1 and 2
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Step Two Quality-added articles

• ACP (American College of Physicians) Journal Club
• Evidence-Based Medicine
• Best Evidence, offers both of them together
• Unlike Cochrane Library, their records are not
  updated

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Example 2

• Search ACP Journal Club for antibiotic prevention
  for hernia repair

Find a link to ACP Journal Club
here http//ssrc.tums.ac.ir/Launch.asp
Suggested search strategy 1 hernia
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Step Three Clinical Evidence

• A publication that summarizes the results of
  reviews and other high quality evidence to answer
  specific clinical questions
• The updates to, for example, Cochrane systematic
  reviews, are reflected with a time lag

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Step four Web sites

• HSTAT (Health Services/Technology Assessment
  Text) web site
• TRIP (Turning Research Into Practice)
• ScHARR-Locks Guide to Evidence

Find links to the above here http//ssrc.tums.ac.
ir/Launch.asp
Try this search strategy for TRIP 1 hernia
antibiotic
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Step Five Bibliographic databases

• MEDLINE, EMBASE (Excerpta Medica dataBASE) and
  CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied
  Health Literature)
• Several search strategies (also known as filters)
  are designed for each database

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Examples 3

• Use Clinical Queries section of PubMed web site
  to search for systematic reviews about antibiotic
  prevention for hernia repair
• Use recommended filters provided in the following
  URL, to repeat the search

http//ssrc.tums.ac.ir/filters.asp
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Step Six Ongoing reviews

• Checking for these may be prudent if an answer is
  not required immediately
• Ongoing Cochrane systematic reviews are available
  as protocols in CDSR
• UK National Research Register, and similar web
  sites for US

Find links to the above here http//ssrc.tums.ac.
ir/Launch.asp
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Example 4

• Search NRR through Update-Software for antibiotic
  prevention for hernia repair

Find necessary links here http//ssrc.tums.ac.ir/
Launch.asp
Try this search strategy 1 herniati and
antibioticti
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Example 5

• Find all Cochrane review protocols about alcohol
  dependence from Cochrane web site

Find required link here http//ssrc.tums.ac.ir/La
unch.asp
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Conclusion

• Ask librarians for help
• Need for a single register (like National
  electronic Library for Health - NeLH)

Find required link here http//ssrc.tums.ac.ir/La
unch.asp
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Example 6

• Use NeLH web site to search for all evidence
  about antibiotic prevention for hernia repair

Try this search strategy 1 hernia AND antibiotic