Methods and guidance on conducting, reporting, publishing and appraising living systematic reviews: a scoping review

Abstract

Abstract Background and objective: The living systematic review (LSR) approach is based on an ongoing surveillance of the literature and continual updating. Most currently available guidance documents address the conduct, reporting, publishing and appraisal for systematic reviews (SRs), which is not suitable for LSRs and misses additional LSR-specific considerations. The scoping review allows the mapping of the existing evidence on the topic to support LSRs authors seeking guidance and identifying related gaps. The objective of this scoping review is to systematically collate methodological literature and guidance on how to conduct, report, publish and appraise the quality of LSRs. Methods Standard scoping review methodology was used. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library using the OVID interface, until 28 August 2021. As for searching grey literature, we looked for existing guidelines and handbooks on LSRs from organizations that conduct evidence syntheses using the Lens.org website. Screening was conducted by two authors independently in Rayyan and data extraction was done in duplicate using a pilot tested data extraction form in Excel. Data was extracted according to four pre-defined categories on (i) conducting, (ii) reporting, (iii) publishing and (iv) appraising LSRs. Data synthesis: The data was mapped in visualizing overview tables created in Microsoft Word. Of the 21 included papers, we could extract data for a total of 40 of our pre-defined LSR-specific sub-items. Conclusion There is good methodological guidance available for conducting and publishing LSRs and more lacking guidance on reporting and appraising LSRs.