Using Existing Systematic Reviews To Replace De Novo Processes in Conducting Comparative Effectiveness Reviews

Excerpt

The use of existing SRs to substitute for purely de novo CER methods may provide benefits and risks. Ultimately, EPCs need to work with those who commission the work (i.e., their Task Order Officers at AHRQ and decisionmakers who nominated the topic) to determine whether the potential benefits associated with the incorporation of existing SRs are worth the risks to a CER’s comprehensiveness and transparency or the risk of introducing bias. If a decision has been made to incorporate the use of existing SRs in answering one or more key questions in lieu of using a purely de novo process, we recommend that EPCs apply the following approaches.

Figure 1 is a flow diagram adapted from a methods article by Whitlock and colleagues. It will help guide EPCs as they move through the process of identification, assessment, and use of existing SRs. To ensure transparency, EPCs can include a graphic similar to the example shown in Figure 2 in a CER report so users can identify the number of original citations identified in an SR search, the number of articles that are excluded, and how the existing SRs are being used.