9.3.6 Inclusion criteria

This section of the review details the basis on which systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses were considered for inclusion in the Umbrella Review and should be as transparent and unambiguous as possible. The inclusion criteria for an Umbrella Review will depend on the question(s) asked. As a guiding principle, they should follow the norm for any JBI systematic review, where a question of effectiveness of an intervention(s) or therapy, for example, will stipulate a PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome), or an Umbrella Review that addresses a question that would lend itself to inclusion of qualitative systematic reviews that include a PICo (Population, Phenomena of interest and Context). Umbrella reviews that address multiple questions and evidence types may stipulate both PICO and PICo elements.

Types of participants

The types of participants should be related to the review objectives. The reasons for the inclusion or exclusion of participants detailed in this section should be explained to the reader of the Umbrella Review in the background section of the report.

Interventions/phenomena of interest

There should be congruence between the review objective and the outcomes of interventions under review and/or the phenomena of interest. Interventions may be focused, for example, to only pharmacological management or may be broad, including both pharmacology and other interventions (e.g. diet, exercise, surgery). Relationships should be clearly detailed in the background section. It is beneficial to use definitions where appropriate for the purposes of clarity.

Context/setting

In an Umbrella Review, the context or setting will vary depending on the objective of the review. Context may include but is not limited to consideration of cultural factors such as geographic location, racial or gender based interests. The setting details important features of the study location, such as acute care, primary health care or the community.

Outcomes

Outcomes for Umbrella Reviews should be described and defined and relevant to the question posed by the review. If outcomes are measured in a particular way, this should be included in the description (e.g., measurement of quality of life using the SF-36 questionnaire).

Types of studies

While it is clear that an Umbrella Review will include only existing research syntheses and systematic reviews, there should be a match in this section between the methodology of the systematic review to be considered for inclusion in the Umbrella Review and its primary objective. For example, an Umbrella Review that aims to assess the effectiveness of a range of interventions for aggressive behaviors in elderly dementia patients may limit itself to including systematic reviews that assessed effectiveness by including only randomized controlled trials and other experimental study designs.