Saving Searches, Setting up Alerts and Updating the Searches
Each database enables searchers to create their own personal accounts which is very useful for saving and storing both searches and search results. Into your account, you can save:
In My NCBI for instance, PubMed saves the search strategy as one long string :
Search (deep vein thrombosis) AND (aspirin) AND (travel OR aircraft OR airplane)
If you wish to capture all the elements of the search history (search number, description of words used, no of items found), use the Download History option in Advanced Search and the history will be saved into a spreadsheet.
If you set up alerts on each database, then you don’t need to run the searches again. However, if you haven’t done so, then it is important to re-run the searches exactly as you did originally in order to capture any additional studies published since your last search.
There are several standards for the reporting of reviews, which include the reporting of the search strategies.
Cochrane Collaboration
Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions[1]
Chapter 11.2 Results of the search and selection of studies
Concentrates on a study flow diagram, using PRISMA as an example
Methodological Expectations of Cochrane Intervention Reviews (MECIR) Project[2]
The MECIR project has drawn up standards for the conduct and the reporting of Cochrane Intervention Reviews. Very useful to follow even if you are not doing a Cochrane review – use as a checklist. Each standard is either mandatory or highly desirable and the exclusion should be justified. A rationale and elaboration of each standard is included as well as a reference to the relevant section of the Cochrane Handbook.
Methodological standards for the reporting of Cochrane Intervention Reviews, version 1.1, 17 Dec 2012, Items R34-R39:
Item R34 Search sources
Item R35 Latest searches
Item R36 Search timeframe
Item R37 Searches for different types of evidence
Item R38 Search strategies for bibliographic databases
Item R39 Search strategies for other sources
PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) Statement
The Statement consists of a 27-item checklist and a flow diagram. It has been published in several journals, together with an Explanation and Elaboration document. See the PRISMA website for links to the journal articles.
Liberati et al[3] explain the PRISMA statement in detail. Relevant to the search process and reporting of the searches are:
Item 7 Information Sources
Includes an example of how to describe the sources searched
Item 8 Search
Includes an example and explanation of a search strategy
Figure 1 PRISMA Flow Diagram
Illustrates the flow of information through the different phases of a systematic review (see Appendix 1.)
The Cochrane Handbook (Chapter 11.2) has published an example of using the PRISMA flow diagram.[4]
Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (CRD), University of York.
In Systematic Reviews: CRD’s guidance for undertaking reviews in health care[5], Appendix 3 deals with documenting the search process and has a useful sample OVID search strategy which could be added as an appendix. It also explains how to describe the search strategy within the text of your review. Available at: https://www.york.ac.uk/media/crd/Systematic_Reviews.pdf
EQUATOR Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research
EQUATOR[6] collates the different reporting standards applied to different study types:
[1] Schünemann HJ, Oxman AD, Higgins JPT, Vist GE, Glasziou P, Guyatt GH. Chapter 11: Presenting the results and “Summary of findings tables”. In: Higgins JPT, Green S (editors). Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Version 5.1.0 [updated March 2011]. The Cochrane Collaboration, 2011. Available from http://www.cochrane-handbook.org
[2]Higgins JPT, Lasserson T, Chandler J, Tovey D, Churchill R. Methodological Expectations of Cochrane Intervention Reviews. Cochrane: London, Version 1.02.2016. Updated Jan 2018. Available from: https://community.cochrane.org/sites/default/files/uploads/MECIR%20PRINTED%20BOOKLET%20FINAL%20v1.02.pdf
[3] Liberati, A et al. The PRISMA Statement for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of studies that evaluate health care interventions: explanation and elaboration. PLoS Medicine 2009 6(7): e1000100
[4] Schünemann HJ, Oxman AD, Higgins JPT, Vist GE, Glasziou P, Guyatt GH. Chapter 11: Presenting the results and “Summary of findings tables”. In: Higgins JPT, Green S (editors). Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Version 5.1.0 [updated March 2011]. The Cochrane Collaboration, 2011. Available from http://www.cochrane-handbook.org
[5] Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, University of York. Systematic Reviews: CRD’s guidance for undertaking reviews in health care. University of York, 2008. Available from http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/crd/index_guidance.htm
[6] EQUATOR Reporting guidelines for main study types. Available from https://www.equator-network.org/