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Systematic Reviews

A guide to conducting systematic reviews at the University of the Sunshine Coast

Handsearching

Handsearching involves the page-by-page examination of relevant journal issues, conference proceedings and other publications for relevant studies. In addition, the checking of reference lists of journal articles and other documents retrieved from a search.

Why is handsearching important?

  1. Locates relevant items poorly indexed or not indexed at all. Some databases do not comprehensively index all content in journal issues,  or may not index at all supplements, special issues, or conference abstracts
  2. Allows researchers to scan content quickly for relevant studies from high-impact journals
  3. Ensures that relevant studies are not overlooked. (HLWIKI Canada)

Cochrane Review - Handsearching Versus Electronic Searching to Identify Reports of Randomized Trials

Hopewell S, Clarke MJ, Lefebvre C, Scherer RW. Handsearching versus electronic searching to identify reports of randomized trials. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2007, Issue 2. Art. No.: MR000001. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.MR000001.pub2

Main results

Handsearching identified between 92% to 100% of the total number of reports of randomized trials found in the various comparisons in this review.

Searching MEDLINE retrieved 55%, EMBASE 49% and PsycINFO 67%.

Author’s Conclusion

“Handsearching still has a valuable role to play in identifying reports of randomized trials for inclusion in systematic reviews of health care interventions, particularly in identifying trials reported as abstracts, letters and those published in languages other than English, together with all reports published in journals not indexed in electronic databases.”

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