Table 4 Comparison of search sensitivities in three case studies
From: Identifying systematic reviews of the adverse effects of health care interventions
Search Terms | Sensitivity in DARE in this case study (GS = 256) | Sensitivity in CDSR in this case study (GS = 14) | Sensitivity in MEDLINE in Badgett et al's study [2] (QGS = 323) | Sensitivity in MEDLINE in Golder et al's study [4] (QGS = 67) | Sensitivity in EMBASE in Golder et al's study [4] (QGS = 72) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
'adverse effects' (floating subheading) | 77% | 64% | 86% | 79% | 79%[1] |
'complications' (floating subheading) | 14% | 0% | 12% | 6% | 5%[1] |
'poisoning' (floating subheading) | 0.4% | 0% | 10% | 0% | n/a |
'chemically induced' (floating subheading) | 33% | 29% | Not tested | 28% | n/a |
'toxicity' (floating subheading) | 1% | 0% | Not tested | 0% | 3%[1] |
'drug effects' (floating subheading) | 16% | 29% | Not tested | 33% | n/a |
'adverse effects' OR 'complications' OR 'poisoning' (floating subheadings) | 79% | 57% | 95% | 82% | 81% |
'adverse effects OR 'complications' OR 'poisoning' OR 'drug effects' OR 'toxicity' OR 'chemically induced' (floating subheadings) | 85% | 64% | Not tested | 88% | 81%[1] |
'adverse effects' OR 'drug effects' OR 'complications' OR 'poisoning' OR 'toxicity' OR 'chemically induced' (all floating subheadings) OR exp DRUG HYPERSENSITIVITY OR exp DRUG TOXICITY OR exp PRODUCT SURVEILLANCE, POSTMARKETING | 85% | 64% | Not tested | 88% | 81%[1] |
exp DRUG HYPERSENSITIVITY OR exp DRUG TOXICITY OR exp PRODUCT SURVEILLANCE, POSTMARKETING | 4% | 0% | Not tested | 10% | 7% |
text word 'adverse' in the title or abstract | 16%[2] | 29%[2] | 10% | 54% | 50% |
synonyms of 'adverse effects' in the title | 52% | 7% | Not tested | 18% | 19% |
synonyms of 'adverse effects' in the abstract | 45%[2] | 36%[2] | Not tested | 87% | 89% |
synonyms of 'adverse effects' in the title Or abstract | 63%[2] | 36%[2] | Not tested | 75% | 75% |