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7.3.6.2 Sources to search

Owned by Carolyn Phillips
Mar 26, 2024
1 min read

 

Appropriate databases to search should be included, the most common being Medline (PubMed) and EMBASE. Details should include specification from the outset of the platform used to search a particular database. Etiology and risk data are commonly reported within the published, peer-reviewed literature and accordingly the standard JBI three-step search strategy can be applied to locating this type of evidence. The search strategy should use both subject heading and text word searches. Initial search terms should be updated after searching the reference lists of relevant articles. The timeframe chosen for the search should be justified and any language restrictions stated (e.g. only studies published in English will be considered for inclusion).

A JBI review should consider papers both published and unpublished (grey) literature. Grey literature can often provide useful studies and estimates for reviews of etiology and risk factors.

Some examples include:

  • Disease and health association websites (e.g. American Diabetes Association)

  • Bibliographic databases: Disease and allied health research database (e.g. Medline, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, British Nursing Index (BNI), Web of Science, Cochrane library, PhD theses etc)

  • Conference abstracts or proceedings (e.g. BIOSIS databases, American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Biological Abstracts/RRM, British Library Inside, British Library Direct Plus, ISI Proceedings)

  • Web searching (e.g. Google Scholar, Science.gov)

  • Administrative sources (clinical records, insurance data)

  • Vital statistics data, government reports, centres for disease control and prevention data, population consensus and surveys

  • Medical books, grey literature and reports from experts.