Conducting a Systematic Review

In a nutshell, a systematic review is a secondary study from a collection of primary studies (original research) that pertain to a specific research question. Those primary studies have been analyzed, examined, appraised, and evaluated for the highest level of evidence and quality of methodology, in order to provide the best answer to a research question.

The methods and/or protocol of conducting a systematic review are clear, understandable, rigorous and transparent. In a systematic review, you should see:

• A clearly stated objective.
• Search Methods: The where, and the how. 
• Selection Criteria (inclusion/exclusion): What does the study need to look like to answer your research question.
  • Types of participants, problem, study design
  • Interventions, exposures, outcomes.
• See the example below:

Additional Definitions: 

Systematic reviews are often confused with review articles. This type of publication are often called narrative reviews or literature reviews. 

Literature reviews (or narrative reviews or review articles) are valuable and help to build one's knowledge base on a topic. However, they are quite different from systematic reviews.

• There is no research question.
• It is an overview or BROAD examination of the published literature on a topic.
• There is no critical appraisal of the research. No stated methods as it is not study, but rather a narrative review of the studies. 
• See the example below:

References

1.           Akram S, Nanji I, Deniz I, Akram F, Mukhtar F. Maintenance Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Major Depressive Disorder: A Meta-analysis. J ect. Aug 26 2024;doi:10.1097/yct.0000000000001064

2.           Bitterman D, Patel P, Wang JY, et al. Systematic review of dupilumab safety and efficacy for treatment of keloid scars. Arch Dermatol Res. Aug 23 2024;316(8):560. doi:10.1007/s00403-024-03277-6

3.           Gupta R, Quy R, Lin M, et al. Role of Influenza Vaccination in Cardiovascular Disease: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Cardiol Rev. Sep-Oct 01 2024;32(5):423-428. doi:10.1097/crd.0000000000000533

4.           Hauben M, Rafi M, Abdelaziz I, Hassanzadeh O. Knowledge Graphs in Pharmacovigilance: A Scoping Review. Clin Ther. Jul 2024;46(7):544-554. doi:10.1016/j.clinthera.2024.06.003

5.           Wu JJ, Hauben M, Younus M. Current Approaches in Postapproval Vaccine Safety Studies Using Real-World Data: A Systematic Review of Published Literature. Clin Ther. Jul 2024;46(7):555-564. doi:10.1016/j.clinthera.2024.06.005

• The Campbell Collaboration is an international research network that produces systematic reviews of the effects of social interventions focusing on education, crime and justice, and social welfare.
• The Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (CRD) databases are updated daily and provide decision-makers with access to quality assessed systematic reviews, economic evaluations, summaries of health technology assessments, summaries of all Cochrane reviews and protocols, and summaries of Campbell reviews.
• The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) includes the full text of regularly updated systematic reviews of the effects of healthcare prepared by The Cochrane Collaboration.
• The Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE) covers a broad range of health related interventions and complements the CDSR by quality-assessing and summarizing reviews that have not yet been carried out by the Cochrane Collaboration. Each abstract includes a summary of the review together with a critical commentary about the overall quality.
• Both PubMed and PubMed Clinical Queries can be used to locate systematic reviews. The Clinical Queries tool retrieves citations identified as systematic reviews, meta-analyses, reviews of clinical trials, evidence-based medicine, consensus development conferences, guidelines, and citations to articles from journals specializing in review studies of value to clinicians.

NOTE: Linking to the Cochrane Databases and PubMed through the Health Sciences Library ensures that you have access to the full text of systematic reviews and articles when available.