Article type
Year
Abstract
Background: With the continued increase in the number of reviews in the Cochrane Library several groups have expressed a desire to combine reviews on similar topics into single overviews. At least three groups have taken this further and have looked at how the process of combining reviews might be addressed (see abstracts numbers 2, 65, 66, 77). The Cochrane Library is a natural and appropriate place to publish those overviews. We looked at the technical implications of including such documents both in the existing Library and the new software available soon.
Methods: Document Type Definitions (DTDs) were generated for the overviews and compared with the existing DTDs of documents already in the Library. Methods of displaying links between overviews and their source reviews, and between reviews and their source studies were explored. The implications for management of the overviews was assessed in the context of the document management system used to maintain the Library. Implications for CRGs were not assessed. Results Overviews could be published in the existing library as simple narrative documents. However, the new version of the Library allows much richer documents to be published, giving groups the possibility to explore more fully different methods of combining reviews and presenting results. Linking reviews and overviews to facilitate navigation could be accommodated. Overviews could be included in Update Software's document management system without any modifications, provided appropriate DTDs could be agreed.
Conclusions: Overviews of reviews could easily be included in the existing Cochrane Library as simple text documents. This would be sufficient for those groups whose approach to combining reviews is essentially narrative but would not fully satisfy groups whose approach involves statistical combinations of data. The richer document types possible in the new Library extend the range of options for presenting information and could easily accommodate additional material such as bespoke graphs and tables. Graphical displays of how reviews and overviews interrelate could be included in the Library. Update Software's document management system could accommodate the overviews, but methods for managing and maintaining these overviews by CRGs and the likely resource implications need to be addressed.
Methods: Document Type Definitions (DTDs) were generated for the overviews and compared with the existing DTDs of documents already in the Library. Methods of displaying links between overviews and their source reviews, and between reviews and their source studies were explored. The implications for management of the overviews was assessed in the context of the document management system used to maintain the Library. Implications for CRGs were not assessed. Results Overviews could be published in the existing library as simple narrative documents. However, the new version of the Library allows much richer documents to be published, giving groups the possibility to explore more fully different methods of combining reviews and presenting results. Linking reviews and overviews to facilitate navigation could be accommodated. Overviews could be included in Update Software's document management system without any modifications, provided appropriate DTDs could be agreed.
Conclusions: Overviews of reviews could easily be included in the existing Cochrane Library as simple text documents. This would be sufficient for those groups whose approach to combining reviews is essentially narrative but would not fully satisfy groups whose approach involves statistical combinations of data. The richer document types possible in the new Library extend the range of options for presenting information and could easily accommodate additional material such as bespoke graphs and tables. Graphical displays of how reviews and overviews interrelate could be included in the Library. Update Software's document management system could accommodate the overviews, but methods for managing and maintaining these overviews by CRGs and the likely resource implications need to be addressed.