Smart Searching, Stronger Science

A well‑designed plan prevents unfocused, repetitive searching and helps avoid wasting time on long, unfocused article lists. Defining goals, endpoints, and the scope of work ensures the search generates useful, relevant information and can be repeated or adapted methodically.

Define key concepts, consider population characteristics, and use synonyms, variant spellings, acronyms, and truncations (e.g., “cardio*”). Booleans (AND/OR/NOT) help refine searches, and filters such as publication type or date range improve specificity. Reviewing terminology changes across years may also be necessary

Using the PICOS framework (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes, Study design) helps craft focused research questions. MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) terms provide structured vocabulary for precise searching, and PRISMA guidelines support transparent reporting of systematic searches

Different databases index different sets of journals, and research shows that no single source reliably retrieves all relevant references. Guidance suggests using at least MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar to improve sensitivity and capture rate—though this also increases screening workload

AI tools can assist by suggesting alternative search terms, enabling semantic searching, or mapping citation networks, but they cannot replace expert‑led search strategies. They may miss paywalled content, produce inaccurate results, or hallucinate information. A hybrid approach—traditional databases plus AI augmentation—is recommended