1. Current methods for development of rapid reviews about diagnostic tests: an international survey.
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Arevalo-Rodriguez, Ingrid, Steingart, Karen R., Tricco, Andrea C., Nussbaumer-Streit, Barbara, Kaunelis, David, Alonso-Coello, Pablo, Baxter, Susan, Bossuyt, Patrick M., Emparanza, José Ignacio, and Zamora, Javier
- Subjects
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DIAGNOSIS methods , *COMPUTER surveys , *META-analysis - Abstract
Background: Rapid reviews (RRs) have emerged as an efficient alternative to time-consuming systematic reviews-they can help meet the demand for accelerated evidence synthesis to inform decision-making in healthcare. The synthesis of diagnostic evidence has important methodological challenges. Here, we performed an international survey to identify the current practice of producing RRs for diagnostic tests.Methods: We developed and administered an online survey inviting institutions that perform RRs of diagnostic tests from all over the world.Results: All participants (N = 25) reported the implementation of one or more methods to define the scope of the RR; however, only one strategy (defining a structured question) was used by ≥90% of participants. All participants used at least one methodological shortcut including the use of a previous review as a starting point (92%) and the use of limits on the search (96%). Parallelization and automation of review tasks were not extensively used (48 and 20%, respectively).Conclusion: Our survey indicates a greater use of shortcuts and limits for conducting diagnostic test RRs versus the results of a recent scoping review analyzing published RRs. Several shortcuts are used without knowing how their implementation affects the results of the evidence synthesis in the setting of diagnostic test reviews. Thus, a structured evaluation of the challenges and implications of the adoption of these RR methods is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2020
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