Systematic Searching of the Literature: Resources for those Developing Cochrane Reviews


EBM Resources
These web pages were originally developed for the Cochrane Reviewer's Workshop Dalhousie University, Halifax, N. S., May 10-11, 2004. They have been updated to support the Cochrane Reviewers Workshop sponsored by the Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation, Dec. 9, 2010.

Systematic Searching of the Literature for the Cochrane Reviewers Workshop - December 9, 2010

Searching the literature is a vital part of the "data collection" phase of a Cochrane systematic review. As with any phase of the review, it is important to minimize bias. The sources and information on these pages are designed to assist you in producing systematic and rigorous searches of the literature, both published and unpublished. Read more about the aim of a good systematic search.


bullet Sources of help

bullet Five phases of searching

bullet Key sources of reviews

bullet Documenting your search

bullet Formulating an answerable question

bullet Developing the Search Strategy

bullet Sources of relevant studies

bullet Databases

bullet Publication bias

bullet Handsearching




Quick Links to Key Cochrane Guides and Resources