LibGuides: Systematic Reviews: Managing search results

Systematic reviewing tools and software

There are several software packages available which provide guidance and management of the systematic review process. See Cochrane tools and software.

JBI (Joanna Briggs Institute

Access to JBI Sumari
JBI provide access to SUMARI (The System for the Unified Management, Assessment and Review of Information). This will guide you through the steps of a systematic review.

JBI (Joanna Briggs Institute) This link opens in a new window
ECU staff and students have access to JBI's SUMARI software through our institutional subscription to the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) database. See EBP Tools - SUMARI.

Covidence
The Covidence software produced by Cochrane is highly respected and available for individual subscription through their website. Covidence is the primary screening and data extraction tool for Cochrane authors, streamlining the production of standard intervention reviews. A trial version is available for reviews with 500 citations or fewer.
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Covidence support and training: Online Knowledge Base: Demo videos, answers to frequently asked questions and more can be found online at http://support.covidence.org/help_center
EPPI-Reviewer 4
EPPI-Reviewer 4 is software for all types of literature review, including systematic reviews, meta-analyses, 'narrative' reviews and meta-ethnographies. EPPI-Reviewer 4 is developed and maintained by the EPPI-Centre at the Social Science Research Unit of the UCL Institute of Education, University of London, UK.
SR Toolbox
The Systematic Review Toolbox is a community-driven, searchable, web-based catalogue of tools that support the systematic review process across multiple domains (including Cochrane's tools). The resource aims to help reviewers find appropriate tools based on how they provide support for the systematic review process. Users can perform a simple keyword search (i.e. Quick Search) to locate tools, a more detailed search (i.e. Advanced Search) allowing users to select various criteria to find specific types of tools and submit new tools to the database.Although the focus of the Toolbox is on identifying software tools to support systematic reviews, other tools or support mechanisms (such as checklists, guidelines and reporting standards) can also be found.
Rayaan
Rayyan is a basic web tool designed to help researchers working on systematic reviews, scoping reviews and other knowledge synthesis projects, by dramatically speeding up the process of screening and selecting studies. A 14-day free trial is available.
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Guidance on using Rayyan is available on the McGill University, Rayyan for Systematic Reviews guide:
https://libraryguides.mcgill.ca/rayyan/gettingstarted

Reviews:

Cleo, G., Scott, A. M., Islam, F., Julien, B., & Beller, E. (2019). Usability and acceptability of four systematic review automation software packages: a mixed method design. Systematic Reviews, 8(1), Article 145. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-019-1069-6

Kellermeyer, L., Harnke, B., & Knight, S. (2018). Covidence and Rayyan. Journal of the Medical Library Association, 106(4), 580–583. https://doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2018.513 [Note: since this article was published, Rayyan has started charging a monthly fee.]

Reference management software (EndNote)

Reference management software such as EndNote can be used to store, manage, organise, search and reference literature found during the search portion of the systematic review.

EndNote allows you to:

De-duplication of references
Easily manage large numbers of references
Import references automatically from databases
Record details of where the reference was obtained (e.g. database, date, search statement) – Groups & Custom Fields)
Record progress of interlibrary loans (ordered/received) – Custom Fields & Smart Groups
Annotate/code references for inclusion, exclusion, background – Custom Fields & Smart Groups
Export references for screening in a separate tool such as Covidence
Create citations & reference lists when writing
Create reference lists of papers included/excluded
Share your EndNote library with co-authors
Conduct a frequency analysis of keywords in your library using Terms List & Subject Bibliography tools to improve the search terms used.