Systematic reviews for studies of older people

Susan Shenkin is Associate Editor for Systematic Reviews at Age and Ageing journal. She has recently published Systematic reviews: guidance relevant for studies of older people. She tweets at @SusanShenkin

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are increasingly common. Our recent article in Age and Ageing journal aims to provide guidance for people conducting systematic reviews relevant to the healthcare of older people. It’s essential that systematic reviews are performed by a team which includes the required technical and clinical expertise: if you’re planning to do a review, ask for advice and support early. We hope that highlighting these issues will also help people reading systematic reviews to determine whether the results will influence their clinical practice. Here is a summary of ‘good practice points’.