1. Documenting
The search should be documented :
To report it correctly in the Review
The enable the search to be reproduced
To enable others to assess the thoroughness of the search
To enable the search to be updated
To demonstrate compliance with standards
Databases
List all the databases searched, including the platform and vendor e.g. Ovid Medline
Note the period searched and the date of the last search for each resource
Note any restrictions / limits applied e.g. language
The full strategy for each database with total hits and set numbers
Copy and paste exactly as run
If text mining software is used document the software used and the version
Other sources
All searches conducted by hand-searching
Experts contacted
2. Reporting
There are a number of places where searches can be reported. These include the appendix, the review abstract, the methods section, the results section or as supplementary material.
Reporting the date of the search – the last date the search was conducted.
CASP ( Critical Appraisal Skills Programme) illustrates what people will be looking for when they come to appraise your review.
Cochrane Handbook For Systematic Reviews of Interventions, 2011 (Section 6.6)
"The search process needs to be documented in enough detail throughout the process to ensure that it can be reported correctly in the review, to the extent that ll the searches of all the databases are reproducible"
It is advisable to use the PRISMA 2009 flow diagram for further documentation of the number of records identified by database searching and through other sources.
Here's a useful app for creating the PRISMA flow diagram:
https://hollyhartman.shinyapps.io/PRISMAFlowDiagram/
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