PRISMA 2020 explanation and elaboration: updated guidance and exemplars for reporting systematic reviews

Matthew J Page*, David Moher, Patrick M Bossuyt, Isabelle Boutron, Tammy C Hoffmann, Cynthia D Mulrow, Larissa Shamseer, Jennifer M Tetzlaff, Elie A Akl, Sue E Brennan, Roger Chou, Julie Glanville, Jeremy M Grimshaw, Asbjørn Hróbjartsson, Manoj M Lalu, Tianjing Li, Elizabeth W Loder, Evan Mayo-Wilson, Steve McDonald, Luke A McGuinnessLesley A Stewart, James Thomas, Andrea C Tricco, Vivian A Welch, Penny Whiting, Joanne E McKenzie

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

5155 Citations (Scopus)
479 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The methods and results of systematic reviews should be reported in sufficient detail to allow users to assess the trustworthiness and applicability of the review findings. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement was developed to facilitate transparent and complete reporting of systematic reviews and has been updated (to PRISMA 2020) to reflect recent advances in systematic review methodology and terminology. Here, we present the explanation and elaboration paper for PRISMA 2020, where we explain why reporting of each item is recommended, present bullet points that detail the reporting recommendations, and present examples from published reviews. We hope that changes to the content and structure of PRISMA 2020 will facilitate uptake of the guideline and lead to more transparent, complete, and accurate reporting of systematic reviews.
Original languageEnglish
Article numbern160
Number of pages36
JournalBMJ
Volume372
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 29 Mar 2021

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Author(s) (or their employer(s)).

Keywords

  • Data Accuracy
  • Evidence-Based Medicine
  • Humans
  • Medical Writing/standards
  • Meta-Analysis as Topic
  • Practice Guidelines as Topic
  • Quality Control
  • Research Design/standards
  • Statistics as Topic
  • Systematic Reviews as Topic/methods
  • Terminology as Topic

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'PRISMA 2020 explanation and elaboration: updated guidance and exemplars for reporting systematic reviews'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this