Framework Section C 3.0

  • Section C.  How the “living evidence” synthesis will be carried out?

  • This section is intended to help you establish the plan of the living evidence synthesis. Each living evidence synthesis should start with a “high-quality baseline evidence synthesis”, from which the living process will be setting-up. Therefore, the following steps will help you to plan both, the baseline synthesis and the living evidence process. You should have at hand the results of the evidence search that you have carried out to answer the selected PICO. When completed, you will have the necessary information to include in a LE synthesis protocol for this question.

     

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  • Take the question defined and the outcomes of interest

  • Step 1. What is the most appropriate baseline evidence synthesis from the current evidence?

    This step seeks to provide guidance in defining the most appropriate evidence synthesis according to the findings of the search carried out:

  • Note: If your question is about an intervention and the evidence from randomized clinical trials is insufficient, consider including non-randomized primary studies to answer it. In this case, modify the search strategy to identify these types of studies.

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  • Step 2. Planning the baseline evidence synthesis for main outcomes and define the certainty in the current evidence available for each outcome.

    You can complete this process following your organization usual methods. Otherwise, you can follow the guidance provided by the LE-IHD project in the evidence synthesis protocol template.

  • Step 3. What strategy will be used to keep the evidence continuously up to date?

    This step is intended to help you to define the methods for the “living evidence” process to keep your evidence synthesis up-to-date. The group must define a priori and make explicit the frequency with which it will search, screen, and select new studies and update the synthesis when new studies emerge.

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  • Note: If you are using the L.OVE platform, consider that it only requires human work to teach the screening of titles and abstracts of your question.

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  • Step 4: How the new evidence will be integrated into the existing evidence synthesis?
    This step seeks your organization plan the process it will follow to update the synthesis of evidence when new eligible studies with relevant results on the outcomes of interest are identified.

     

    According to the following flow chart, answer the subsequent questions.

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  • Consider that the PICO question, as well as the selection parameters, should be revised after each evidence monitoring, to adjust it according to changes in the evidence. 

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  • Step 5: How to incorporate the new evidence into the knowledge transfer product that informs this decision?

    The following flowchart allows you to determine the path you can take when you updated the evidence synthesis as part of the monitoring of evidence, based on the impact they generate upon the conclusions.

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  • Step 6: How the results of the periodic updates will be disseminated? 

    This step seeks to help your organization to ensure the results of the constant evidence updating process will reach final users (e.g., last search date, findings, and implications on conclusions).

    It is important to determine the most appropriate way to disseminate the results of the periodic updates that arise from the “living evidence” process. This task should be according to the organization’s current established processes, resources and channels of dissemination. Relevant changes in the conclusions that imply changes in current clinical practice should be promptly reported to the reader and the main stakeholders involved.

     

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  • If you are going to publish the results of the baseline evidence synthesis and its subsequent updates in a scientific journal, answering the following questions when selecting the journal will help you to identify an appropriate one.  

    • Does the journal allow updates of future publications. (e.g., new post/new DOI, re-post, short comment article, etc.)?
    • Does the journal allow publishing supplementary material online that can be updated?
    • Do new updates to publications need to be peer-reviewed?
    • Is an editorial review of constant updates necessary?

    Section summary. Once you have completed the baseline evidence synthesis, you can start the evidence surveillance. This process and the information you need to collect on the evidence monitoring process is part of Section D of the Framework. You should fill it out each time the evidence is reviewed during monitoring process

    Click "submit". A PDF document will be generated. Keep this document among the documents that support the process of this evidence synthesis.

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