Evidence Synthesis Methods Interest Group

  • 1.  How to search for reviews where no studies meet the criteria

    Posted Apr 14, 2022 12:16 PM
    Hi
    I have been working with a student and we discussed what to do if a review finds no evidence that meet the inclusion statement.  I shared this article,     Empty reviews: a description and consideration of Cochrane systematic reviews with no included studies, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22574201/ .  The student asked if there were other reviews like that.  The first method the authors used, "The Cochrane Collaboration Information Management System (Archie) was used to identify any Cochrane systematic reviews through December 2009 that contained no included studies. " is not available to me.  The second. "Remaining reviews from January to August 15, 2010 were identified through hand search of The CDSR by one author and verified by a second author, " is not something I can take on.

    Has anyone searched for reviews where 0 articles meet the criteria?

    Thank you!

    Jenny




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    Jenny Pierce
    Head of Research Education and Outreach Services
    Temple University Health Sciences Libraries
    jenny.pierce@temple.edu
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  • 2.  RE: How to search for reviews where no studies meet the criteria

    Posted Apr 15, 2022 01:40 AM
    Edited by System Sep 01, 2022 01:59 PM
    Hi Jenny,

    I've looked for examples of empty reviews in the past. This is the (very basic) search string I use in Google Scholar. I tried it again just now and the first page looked highly relevant.

    "systematic review" AND ("zero eligible studies" OR "empty review" OR "no eligible studies" OR "empty systematic review")

    Cheers,
    Zahra

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    Zahra Premji
    Health Research Librarian
    University of Victoria Libraries
    zahrapremji@uvic.ca
    She/Her/Hers
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  • 3.  RE: How to search for reviews where no studies meet the criteria

    Posted Apr 15, 2022 10:14 AM
    Hi! Here are some examples that I know about--

    Schlosser, R. W., Hemsley, B., Shane, H., Todd, J., Lang, R., Lilienfeld, S. O., ... & Odom, S. (2019). Rapid prompting method and autism spectrum disorder: Systematic review exposes lack of evidence. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 6(4), 403-412. doi:10.1007/s40489-019-00175-w

    Cicero, F. R. (2022). Bladder Training for Individuals with Autism: a Systematic Review Concludes as Empty. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 1-9. doi:10.1007/s40489-022-00315-9

    In terms of searching..
    In google scholar I had some success limiting to the cited by items for Empty Reviews: A Description and Consideration of Cochrane Systematic Reviews.. and then selecting "Search within citing articles" w/ the following search string ((No OR none) studies met "inclusion criteria") OR "empty review". This gave 75 results, and some appear to be relevant. See 2 examples below.

    1. Leighton, K., Kardong-Edgren, S., McNelis, A. M., Foisy-Doll, C., & Elaine Sullo, M. L. S. Traditional Clinical Outcomes in Prelicensure Nursing Education: An Empty Systematic Review. Journal of Nursing Education. doi:10.3928/01484834-20210222-03

    2. Afonso, J., Claudino, J. G., Fonseca, H., Moreira-Gonçalves, D., Ferreira, V., Almeida, J. M., ... & Ramirez-Campillo, R. (2021). Stretching for Recovery from Groin Pain or Injury in Athletes: A Critical and Systematic Review. Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology, 6(3), 73. doi:10.3390/jfmk6030073
    --

    Amy Riegelman (she, her, hers)
    Social Sciences Librarian