Systematic Reviews (SR)

1. Define the question

2. Assemble the team

3. Create a review protocol

4. Conduct a thorough search of existing information

5. Select studies per your protocol

6. Appraise the quality of the studies

7. Extract data

8. Analyze and present results

9. Interpret results

10. Write up the report

For more information, see Yale University guide to systematic review searching

• Cochrane Collaboration Handbook
  Official document that describes in detail the process of preparing and maintaining Cochrane systematic reviews on the effects of healthcare interventions.

• Finding What Works in Health Care: Standards for Systematic Reviews
  Institute of Medicine (IOM)'s standards focus on the development and reporting of comprehensive, publicly funded SRs of the comparative effectiveness of therapeutic medical or surgical interventions.

• Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: The PRISMA Statement
  Evidence-based minimum set of items for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analyses.  Focused on randomized trials,  PRISMA can also be used as a basis for reporting systematic reviews of other types of research, particularly evaluations of interventions. Download the PRISMA Checklist

• Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE): a proposal for reporting.
  JAMA. 2000 Apr 19;283(15):2008-12.

• Systematic Reviews: CRD’s guidance for undertaking reviews in health care
  Provides practical guidance for undertaking evidence synthesis based on a thorough understanding of systematic review methodology.

"For an SR to meet the definition of CER, it should compare at least two alternative interventions, treatments, or systems of care (IOM, 2009b). The interventions and comparators should enable patients and clinicians to balance the benefits and harms of potential treatment options."

• Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER)
  AHRQ definitions and descriptions of methods for systematic reviews of CER

• AHRQ Comparative Effectiveness Reviews
  Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2005-.