Table 1.
General comparison of rapid review versus systematic review approaches a
| Rapid review | Systematic review | |
|---|---|---|
| Timeframeb | ≤ 5 weeks | 6 months to 2 years |
| Question | Question specified a priori (may include broad PICOS) | Often a focused clinical question (focused PICOS) |
| Sources and searches | Sources may be limited but sources/strategies made explicit | Comprehensive sources searched and explicit strategies |
| Selection | Criterion-based; uniformly applied | Criterion-based |
| Appraisal | Rigorous; critical appraisal (SRs only) | Rigorous; critical appraisal |
| Synthesis | Descriptive summary/categorization of the data | Qualitative summary +/- meta-analysis |
| Inferences | Limited/cautious interpretation of the findings | Evidence-based |
aSpecific to the KTA program - other groups have experimented with other approaches of rapid review and will therefore have other differences; bPrimary difference; other potentially important differences are noted in the cells. PICOS = population, interventions, comparators, outcomes and study designs; SR = systematic review.