Include details of data sources, the time span of the literature covered for each source and the date/week(s) when the searches were carried out. The sources are usually presented in the following order:
List all search terms in this section and put the actual syntax in the appendix. This is crucial and syntax must be included. Make sure terms defined in the criteria as well as their synonyms or historical terms are all included.
Study selection
State how studies were screened and selected using the pre-defined inclusion / exclusion criteria.
Describe the study quality assessment criteria, the application of those criteria to studies and the interrater reliability between the primary and second reviewers. The quality assessment criteria used in your review goes into an appendix.
Briefly describe the data extraction form and how data extraction was performed. The data extraction form goes into an appendix.
