TY - JOUR
T1 - Using existing systematic reviews in complex systematic reviews
AU - Whitlock, Evelyn P.
AU - Lin, Jennifer S.
AU - Chou, Roger
AU - Shekelle, Paul
AU - Robinson, Karen A.
PY - 2008/5/20
Y1 - 2008/5/20
N2 - Systematic reviewers increasingly must decide whether and how to incorporate existing systematic reviews into complex systematic reviews that are commissioned to support clinical guideline development or for other health policy uses. To date, however, this issue has been largely unexamined. Reviewers seeking to incorporate existing reviews into new reviews face a set of important questions: Can this practice adhere to systematic review principles? Will it save time? When should it be avoided? Will it produce valid results and be acceptable to users? Drawing from their collective experience, the authors outline a series of steps that can help reviewers reach reasoned decisions about the incorporation of existing systematic reviews and enumerate potential hazards to consider in doing so. They highlight issues surrounding the main steps reviewers must undertake, including locating existing reviews; assessing their relevance to the new review; assessing the quality of relevant reviews; determining how to incorporate high-quality, relevant existing systematic reviews; and clearly reporting the methods used and the results from this process. Further specification of methods, including the development of reporting standards for this approach, is needed.
AB - Systematic reviewers increasingly must decide whether and how to incorporate existing systematic reviews into complex systematic reviews that are commissioned to support clinical guideline development or for other health policy uses. To date, however, this issue has been largely unexamined. Reviewers seeking to incorporate existing reviews into new reviews face a set of important questions: Can this practice adhere to systematic review principles? Will it save time? When should it be avoided? Will it produce valid results and be acceptable to users? Drawing from their collective experience, the authors outline a series of steps that can help reviewers reach reasoned decisions about the incorporation of existing systematic reviews and enumerate potential hazards to consider in doing so. They highlight issues surrounding the main steps reviewers must undertake, including locating existing reviews; assessing their relevance to the new review; assessing the quality of relevant reviews; determining how to incorporate high-quality, relevant existing systematic reviews; and clearly reporting the methods used and the results from this process. Further specification of methods, including the development of reporting standards for this approach, is needed.
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U2 - 10.7326/0003-4819-148-10-200805200-00010
DO - 10.7326/0003-4819-148-10-200805200-00010
M3 - Review article
C2 - 18490690
AN - SCOPUS:44149084973
SN - 0003-4819
VL - 148
SP - 776
EP - 782
JO - Annals of internal medicine
JF - Annals of internal medicine
IS - 10
ER -