Systematic Reviews

Pearl growing as a strategy in systematic literature searches

‘Pearl growing’ (also known as ‘Citation mining’ or ‘Snowballing’) is an effective approach to systematic literature searching which helps to ensure that all relevant literature has been identified. All three names hint at the iterative process involved – a grain of sand in an oyster grows slowly, layer by layer, into a pearl – one […] Read More

MS and vitamin D link confirmed by comprehensive systematic review

A recent study published in the journal Neuroscience Letters has combined data from eleven studies in a systematic review and meta-analysis of vitamin D levels in blood and multiple sclerosis. Study author Dr Duan, and colleagues at the Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China reported that on average MS patients […] Read More

Comprehensive review shows no link between vaccinations and autism

New Australian research published in the journal Vaccine has found no evidence for a link between childhood vaccinations and autism. The comprehensive, systematic review was conducted by Associate Professor Guy Eslick, Nepean Clinical School, University of Sydney and included five cohort studies involving more than 1.25 million children and an additional five case-control studies involving more than […] Read More