What is a systematic review?
A systematic review attempts to identify, appraise and synthesize all the empirical evidence that meets pre-specified eligibility criteria to answer a given research question. Researchers conducting systematic reviews use explicit methods aimed at minimizing bias in order to produce more reliable findings that can be used to inform decision making.
Many systematic reviews contain meta-analyses. Meta-analysis is the statistical combination of results from two or more separate studies. By combining information from all relevant studies, meta-analyses can provide more precise estimates of the effects of health care than those derived from the individual studies included within a review. They also facilitate investigations of the consistency of evidence across studies, and the exploration of differences across studies.
(Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews of interventions)
Meta-analysis: Chapter 10: Analysing data and undertaking meta-analyses
What are systematic reviews? (video)
This video was prepared by Cochrane Consumers and Communication, La Trobe University and generously supported by Cochrane Australia. Written by Jack Nunn and Sophie Hill.
Reviewer's handbooks, manuals, guidelines
- Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews of interventions (version 6, 2019)The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions is the official document that describes in detail the process of preparing and maintaining Cochrane systematic reviews on the effects of healthcare interventions. This is Version 6 of the Handbook; updated 2019.
Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of InterventionsISBN: 9781119536611Publication Date: 2nd ed. 2019eBook
- JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis.JBI, 2020. https://doi.org/10.46658/JBIMES-20-01
The JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis is designed to provide authors with a comprehensive guide to conducting JBI systematic reviews. It describes in detail the process of planning, undertaking and writing up a systematic review using JBI methods.
Guidelines:
- National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). GuidelinesNHMRC develops and supports high quality guidelines for clinical practice, public health, environmental health and ethics.
- Systematic reviews: CRD's guidance for undertaking reviews in health careThe University of York. Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (U.K.). 3rd ed., 2009.