Medicine Subject Guides: Scoping review

A scoping review is a type of knowledge synthesis that aims to map the key concepts, types of evidence, and gaps in research related to a specific topic. Unlike systematic reviews, scoping reviews don’t aim to provide a detailed synthesis of findings but rather a broad overview.

• Purpose: Identify knowledge gaps, clarify concepts, examine research approaches, and explore a body of literature.
• When to Use: Early stages of a research project or when you need an overview of the scope of literature on a topic.

• Identify the Research Question

  • The first step in a scoping review is to define a clear, well-structured research question. This is often broader than in systematic reviews and is aimed at exploring the landscape of a topic rather than addressing a specific research outcome.
  • Example: "What research has been done on the impact of digital tools on education in primary schools?"
  • Key considerations:
    • Ensure the question is neither too broad nor too narrow.
    • Consider what aspects of the topic you want to explore (e.g., methodologies, populations, interventions).

• Identify Relevant Studies

  • Develop a comprehensive search strategy to locate studies relevant to the research question. This typically involves:
    • Identifying appropriate databases (e.g., PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science).
    • Using a combination of keywords, phrases, and controlled vocabulary (e.g., MeSH terms for medical databases).
    • Supplementing database searches with grey literature sources like government reports, dissertations, and conference proceedings.
  • Search Documentation: Keep detailed records of search strategies, including search terms, database names, and search dates to ensure transparency and reproducibility.

• Select Studies

  • Screen studies based on pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. This process often has two phases:
    • Title and abstract screening: Quickly assess relevance based on titles and abstracts.
    • Full-text screening: A more in-depth review of selected articles to determine if they meet the inclusion criteria.
  • Ensure that at least two reviewers are involved in screening to minimize bias and ensure consistency.

• Chart the Data

  • Extract and organize data from the selected studies into a structured format (e.g., using Excel, Covidence, or Rayyan).
  • Key elements to chart might include:
    • Study design
    • Population characteristics
    • Interventions or key concepts
    • Main outcomes
    • Gaps identified
  • This process helps in categorizing the literature and identifying trends or gaps.

• Collate, Summarize, and Report Results

  • The final step is to summarize the key findings in a way that aligns with the research question.
    • Quantitative Analysis: Some scoping reviews include numerical summaries (e.g., the number of studies per category).
    • Qualitative Analysis: A narrative approach can be used to describe key themes or patterns in the literature.
  • Unlike systematic reviews, a formal quality assessment of the studies is not usually required, but it can be included if needed.
  • Present the findings clearly, often using tables, charts, and diagrams to provide a visual overview of the scope of research on the topic.