Table 3.
Systematic reviews on NPWT: Search strategies
| Systematic review | Search terms | Literature sources | Search date* | ||||
| MEDLINE | EMBASE | The Cochrane Library | CINAHL | Others | |||
| Samson/AHRQ 2004 [29] |
Vacuum-assisted closure:† - "topical negative pressure" - "sub-atmospheric pressure therapy" (also "subatmospheric") - "sub-atmospheric pressure dressing" (also "subatmospheric") - "vacuum sealing" - "vacuum assisted closure" - "negative pressure dressing" - "negative pressure therapy" - "foam suction dressing" - "vacuum compression" - "vacuum pack" - "sealed surface wound suction" - "sealing aspirative therapy" Wounds: - "wound*" - "ulcer*" - "decubit*" - "incision*" - "dressing" - "free flap" - "skin graft*" - "skin transplantation" - "degloving injuries" - "degloving injury" |
+ MEDLINE via PubMed |
+ | + CENTRAL |
- | - Manufacturers‡ |
6/2004§ |
| Costa/MUHC TAU 2005[30] | "vacuum" or "vacuum-assisted" or "VAC" or "negative pressure" or "suction dressing" or "subatmospheric" or "sub-atmospheric" or "subatmospheric pressure" or "NPWT" and "wound healing"|| | + PubMed |
+ | + CDSR |
- | - HTA agencies (CHSPR, MCHP, ICES, INAHTA) - Screening of reference lists of primary studies and secondary publications |
3/2005 |
| IQWiG 2006 [8] | Search strategies according to databases (published on pages 114 to 130 of the IQWiG review [8]) | + Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid MEDLINE In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations |
+ Ovid EMBASE |
+ CENTRAL; CDSR; DARE; HTA |
+ Ovid CINAHL |
- Trial registries (ClinicalTrials.gov, National Research Register) - Manufacturers¶ - Authorities - Conference proceedings - Authors of articles and conference abstracts - Screening of reference lists of secondary publications |
5/2005 |
| Pham/ASERNIP-S 2006 update [31] | (vacuum or suction) and (wound healing), (vacuum assisted or vacuum-assisted) and (wound or closure), topical negative pressure, (subatmospheric or sub-atmospheric) and pressure | + MEDLINE; PREMEDLINE; PubMed |
+ | + The Cochrane Library |
- | - Current Contents - Trial registries (ClinicalTrials.gov, National Research Register) - The York (UK) Centre for Reviews and Dissemination - Grey literature reports - Relevant online journals - Vacuum therapy website (vacuumtherapy.co.uk) - The Internet |
10/2004 New RCTs: 7/2005** |
| OHTAC 2006 (update) [32] | - wound healing - foot ulcer or skin ulcer or varicose ulcer or leg ulcer - wounds, non penetrating - chronic and ulcer or wound - leg or foot arterial or diabetic and ulcer or wound - suction - pressure - vacuum - vacuum assisted closure or V.A.C. therapy - negative pressure - topical negative pressure - subatmospheric pressure therapy |
+ MEDLINE, MEDLINE In-Process and Non-Indexed Citations |
+ | + CDSR |
- | - HTA agencies (INAHTA) - Vacuum therapy website (vacuumtherapy.co.uk) |
3/2006 |
*End of search period.
† "The intersection of the vacuum-assisted closure terms and wound terms served as the initial pool of references. These were cross-referenced with the terms for randomized trials compiled by the Cochrane Collaboration...." For further details, please see Appendix A [29].
‡Request for "lists of published, randomized, controlled trials (RCTs), published abstracts of RCTs within the past 2 years, and published articles on study design, or protocols of any RCTs (published or in press)" [29].
§CENTRAL: 2003 ("through issue number 4", [29]).
|| "Health technology agencies databases were also searched for technology assessment reports, systematic reviews and economic studies with the keywords 'vacuum', 'subatmospheric pressure', and 'sub-atmospheric pressure' used individually" [30].
¶Unpublished data from primary studies were only to be considered in the review if comprehensive study information (e.g. a clinical study report) was available.
** "Updated searches were performed in July 2005 to include any new RCTs" [31].
AHRQ: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; ASERNIP-S: Australian Safety and Efficacy Register of New Interventional Procedures – Surgical; CDSR: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews; CENTRAL: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials; CHSPR: Centre for Health Services and Policy Research; DARE: Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects; CINAHL: Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature; EMBASE: Excerpta Medica Database; HTA: health technology assessment; CRD: Centre for Reviews and Dissemination; INAHTA: International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment; IQWiG: Institut für Qualität und Wirtschaftlichkeit im Gesundheitswesen (Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care); MCHP: Manitoba Centre for Health Policy; MUHC TAU: McGill University Health Centre Technology Assessment Unit; MEDLINE: Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online; NPWT: negative pressure wound therapy; OHTAC: Ontario Health Technology Advisory Committee; RCT: randomised controlled trial; VAC: vacuum-assisted closure.