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Abstract
Background: There is currently limited guidance in the Cochrane Handbook for the reporting of systematic reviews with no studies eligible for inclusion. This project has previously reported considerable inconsistency in the reporting of these so-called empty reviews across reviews and review groups. The Cochrane Empty Review Project convened an interdisciplinary consensus meeting of Cochrane Collaboration contributors in June 2011. The purpose of the meeting was to formally discuss the issues of empty reviews and to consider guidelines for the reporting of these reviews.
Objectives: The aim of this presentation is to report the outcomes of The Cochrane Empty Review Project Consensus Meeting, and to invite further correspondence and feedback.
Methods: Following the suggestions of Moher et al 2010 for the development of reporting guidelines, The Cochrane Empty Review Project identified the need for reporting guidelines for reviews without included studies by: reviewing the literature, identifying all empty reviews within the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR), describing these reviews, examining how these reviews report implications for practice, and consulting with other systematic review groups to find existing guidelines for reporting empty reviews. This information was then presented for discussion at a formal consensus meeting.
Results: The key proceedings from the June 2011 consensus meeting are presented in this oral presentation. Topics include: possible recommendations for the incorporation of the guidelines, the updating of empty reviews, the referencing of excluded studies, and the reporting of the implications for practice and research sections.
Conclusions: The open discussion of Cochrane contributors regarding these proposed recommendations is invited; preparatory to the submission of the initial report and guidelines to the Cochrane Collaboration and the Cochrane Handbook Committee.
Objectives: The aim of this presentation is to report the outcomes of The Cochrane Empty Review Project Consensus Meeting, and to invite further correspondence and feedback.
Methods: Following the suggestions of Moher et al 2010 for the development of reporting guidelines, The Cochrane Empty Review Project identified the need for reporting guidelines for reviews without included studies by: reviewing the literature, identifying all empty reviews within the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR), describing these reviews, examining how these reviews report implications for practice, and consulting with other systematic review groups to find existing guidelines for reporting empty reviews. This information was then presented for discussion at a formal consensus meeting.
Results: The key proceedings from the June 2011 consensus meeting are presented in this oral presentation. Topics include: possible recommendations for the incorporation of the guidelines, the updating of empty reviews, the referencing of excluded studies, and the reporting of the implications for practice and research sections.
Conclusions: The open discussion of Cochrane contributors regarding these proposed recommendations is invited; preparatory to the submission of the initial report and guidelines to the Cochrane Collaboration and the Cochrane Handbook Committee.