Systematic Review Of Quantitative Research Research Articles

Complications of pediatric enteral nutrition at home: a systematic review of quantitative research

Objective: Identifying complications related to enteral nutrition at home in children is important in terms of establishing standard discharge education and training programs to support parents in managing complications. The study aimed to synthesize current evidence on the complications of pediatric enteral nutrition at home.
 Methods: The study was conducted according to PRISMA recommendations. Eight databases were reviewed between 2012 and 2022 in Turkish, German, and English languages. Articles were assessed in three stages: title, abstract, and full text. The review included 18 studies that met all the inclusion criteria. The Joanna Briggs Institute Meta-Analysis of Statistics Assessment and Review Instruments were used to assess the quality appraisal of the studies.
 Results: A total of 18 studies with 19,531 children were included from 14 countries. The outcome measures were major and minor complications with pediatric enteral nutrition at home. 11 of the 18 papers included were retrospective studies on complications of PEG. In studies reporting the overall rate of major complications ranged from 0% to 14.3%, and the most common complications were reoperation (2.64%-12.4%), and gastrocolic fistula/perforation (0.9%-3.8%). In studies reporting the overall rate of minor complications, the rate ranged from 16.4%-73.6% and the most common complications were infection (8.2%-31.9%), dislodgement (1.6%-21%), skin granulation (4%-50.4%), and vomiting (1%-49.89%).
 Conclusion: This systematic review reveals that the rate of complications in pediatric enteral nutrition at home cannot be underestimated. Healthcare providers should plan their practice considering these complications to support parents in managing complications of pediatric enteral nutrition at home.

Systematic review of quantitative research on digital competences of in-service school teachers

This systematic literature review provides an overview of quantitative research conducted between 2016 and 2021 on the digital competence of in-service school teachers. The main objective is to examine how the digital competence of in-service teachers is defined and measured, along with the explanatory factors influencing its development. The review focuses on databases such as Web of Science, Scopus, and the Education Resources Information Center. Through a rigorous selection process involving search terms, inclusion and exclusion criteria, and an assessment of article quality, 44 articles were chosen from an initial set of 1845. Findings reveal that the assessment of in-service teacher digital competence typically encompasses five dimensions: (1) planning and preparation of digital-based lessons, (2) use of digital technologies to support teaching practices, (3) implementation of classroom activities incorporating student use of digital technologies, (4) utilization of digital technologies to foster 21st-century skills in students, and (5) emphasis on student digital skills. Furthermore, studies in the field tend to prioritize the measurement of in-service teacher abilities to use digital technologies for instructional planning and as a teaching resource. There is less emphasis on measuring their competence in guiding student-centered activities or developing students’ skills. The primary factors explaining digital competence include sociodemographic characteristics, technology use, teaching practice, experience, and attitudes towards ICT. In conclusion, the results highlight the need for a greater consensus and specification regarding the operationalization of in-service teacher digital competences, as well as the improvement of measurement instruments.

Autistic identity: A systematic review of quantitative research.

Autism can be considered both a personal and social identity. Identifying the factors contributing to positive Autistic identity development is crucial given the potential implications for mental health and wellbeing. In this systematic review, we aimed to synthesize quantitative literature on Autistic identity to identify the (individual and environmental) factors associated with Autistic identity, and to ascertain the relationship between Autistic identity and mental health and wellbeing. A total of 3,617 studies were screened and 20 met our inclusion criteria. Results indicated that people developed a more positive Autistic identity when receiving external autism acceptance and external support. The association between individual factors and Autistic identity were largely nonsignificant or inconclusive, highlighting the need for broad support that meets the needs of a range of Autistic people, rather than specific subgroups. Importantly, positive Autistic identity was associated with improved mental health and wellbeing. Peer support and/or self-directed support resources may be valuable mechanisms for supporting Autistic people to cultivate a positive Autistic identity. The evaluation of such support, including the long-term impacts on identity development, will be a critical avenue for future research.

Teacher identity in work with students' psychosocial environment: A systematic review of quantitative research

AbstractThis article is a contribution to understanding teacher identity related to working with students' psychosocial environment (PSE). A systematic review of quantitative studies (n = 10) analyzing the relations between components of teacher identity and teachers' work with the PSE is presented. Findings indicate significant relations between the identity components task‐related self‐efficacy and job satisfaction along with likelihood or frequency of intervention in bullying situations. However, results regarding relations between general teaching efficacy or task perception and teachers' approach to bullying were inconclusive. Findings suggest that teachers' self‐efficacy and job satisfaction as identity domains play an important role in students' PSE. This information has implications for teacher education, professional development, and policymakers.

Anesthetic efficacy of Gow-Gates versus inferior alveolar nerve block for irreversible pulpitis: a systematic quantitative review.

This review aimed to assess and compare the outcomes of the anesthetic efficacy of inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB) and Gow-Gates mandibular nerve block (GGMNB) in patients with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis. A descriptive systematic review of quantitative research was conducted wherein the “Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA)” was adopted, and the Problem/Patient/Population, Intervention/Indicator, Comparison, Outcome (PICO) criteria were used to structure the research question. A literature search was performed using PubMed/Medline, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, and Ovid. Selection criteria were applied for populations over nine years of age, of either sex, with irreversible pulpitis, and articles published in English regarding conventional IANB or IANB and Gow-Gates techniques between 2009 and 2019. Prospective randomized clinical trials or randomized controlled trials were included in the review, in which anesthetic efficacy or success was measured. After screening, four articles were included. Three studies were randomized clinical trials, and two were randomized controlled trials. The validity and reliability of the individual studies were examined. There was evidence of the higher efficacy of the GGMNB technique than that of the IANB technique. However, both techniques can be mastered through training.

Patient personality and psychotherapist reactions in individual psychotherapy setting: a systematic review.

Despite the importance of psychotherapists' subjective experiencse working with patients with mental issues, little is known about the relationship between therapists' emotional reactions and patients' personality problems. The present study is a systematic review of quantitative research on the association between patients' personality pathology and psychotherapists' emotional, cognitive and behavioural reactions in individual psychotherapy setting. A systematic database search (from January 1980 to August 2019) supplemented by manual searches of references and citations identified seven relevant studies. Significant and consistent relationships were found between therapist reactions and specific personality traits or disorders. In general, odd and eccentric patients tend to evoke feelings of distance and disconnection; emotionally dysregulated patients tend to evoke anxiety and incompetence, and anxious and withdrawn patients tend to evoke sympathy and concern. However, the relatively small sample of studies and methodological inconsistencies across studies limit firm conclusions and suggest the need for more systematic research. Findings from this review indicate that patients who share the same personality disorder or symptoms tend to evoke specific and similar cognitive, emotional and behavioural reactions in their therapists. This suggests that therapists overall reactions toward patients may be source of valuable diagnostic information.

Systematic reviews of qualitative evidence for environmental policy and management: an overview of different methodological options

Qualitative research related to the human dimensions of conservation and environment is growing in quantity. Rigorous syntheses of such studies can help develop understanding and inform decision-making. They can combine findings from studies in varied or similar contexts to address questions relating to, for example, the lived experience of those affected by environmental phenomena or interventions, or to intervention implementation. Researchers in environmental management have adapted methodology for systematic reviews of quantitative research so as to address questions about the magnitude of intervention effects or the impacts of human activities or exposure. However, guidance for the synthesis of qualitative evidence in this field does not yet exist. The objective of this paper is to present a brief overview of different methods for the synthesis of qualitative research and to explore why and how reviewers might select between these. The paper discusses synthesis methods developed in other fields but applicable to environmental management and policy. These methods include thematic synthesis, framework synthesis, realist synthesis, critical interpretive synthesis and meta-ethnography. We briefly describe each of these approaches, give recommendations for the selection between them, and provide a selection of sources for further reading.

Factors that influence the health of older widows and widowers-A systematic review of quantitative research.

AimTo examine factors that influence the health of older widows and widowers. The review question was: What is the evidence of the relationship between widowhood and health in older adults?DesignSystematic review.Data sourcesAcademic Search Elite, CINAHL, Medline (Ovid) and PubMed were searched for articles published between January 2013–December 2017.Review methodsA systematic review of quantitative research with a qualitative thematic analysis.ResultsThe selection process resulted in 12 studies. One of the themes that emerged was: emotional challenges related to experiences of bereavement, depression and anxiety, which was based on the sub‐theme social support as the main strategy for coping with emotional pain and suffering. The second theme was: struggling with poor physical health. The findings indicate that healthcare professionals need knowledge and skills to deal with the health consequences of widowhood in old age. Building community teams can prevent emotional and physical health problems, as well as reduce mortality.

Living with epilepsy in adolescence-A qualitative study of young people's experiences in Singapore: Peer socialization, autonomy, and self-esteem.

Systematic reviews of quantitative research on the effects of childhood epilepsy have established its association with higher levels of psychiatric diagnosis, externalizing and internalizing problems, lower health-related quality of life, social competence, and poorer academic achievements, compared with their peers. However, much less is known about young people's experiences of living with epilepsy and its impact on their development from their own perspectives. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 15 young people aged between 13 and 16years. Participants were recruited as part of a larger mixed methods study examining individual and family influences on outcomes for young people with epilepsy. These young people attended an epilepsy clinic in KK Women's and Children's Hospital, Singapore. The framework approach to data management and analyses involved both inductive and deductive generation of themes. Findings from young people's interviews provided in-depth descriptions of stressful circumstances encountered. Interconnectedness between severity of the impairment and its impact on key developmental tasks, such as independence, autonomy, and social development, were emphasized. Seizures and illness-related demands disrupted their day-to-day functioning and challenged their abilities to meet these tasks. In addition to these impairment effects, young people's experiences of social exclusion were also affected by social and environmental factors, which act as systemic barriers to participation. In turn, this has an effect on their self-esteem. Nevertheless, young people reported positive experiences, such as support from both family and friends, which served as protective factors against the stress of living with a chronic medical condition. The demands of epilepsy affect various domains of young people's lives. In order to obtain a holistic understanding of young people's inclusion or exclusion to participation, it is necessary to consider impairment effects, barriers to doing, and barriers to being.

Fit note use in UK clinical practice 2010–2016: A systematic review of quantitative research

BackgroundThe fit note, introduced in England, Wales and Scotland in 2010, was designed to radically change the sickness certification process from advising on individuals’ inability to work to what they could do if adjustments were made available. Our review aimed to evaluate: (1) the percentage of fit notes utilizing the new “may be fit for work” option or advising on work adjustments, (2) the impact of the fit note on sickness absence and return to work, (3) demographic variation in fit note use.MethodsWe systematically searched in Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, Pub Med, Worldcat, Ovid and PsychInfo from 1 Jan 2010–30 Nov 2016 for studies on working aged adults which included the search terms “fit note” or “fitnote”. Relevant abstracts were extracted and we assessed the quality of the papers and assessed bias using the modified Newcastle Ottawa Scale.ResultsNine papers met the inclusion criteria, four of which were based on the same cohort. Maybe fit notes made up just 6.6% of all fit notes. Work adjustments were most often recommended for patients who were less deprived, female and patients with physical health problems. Fit note advice for patients with physical health problems increased over time, but the opposite was seen for patients with mental health problems.ConclusionsFurther research needed to evaluate the use, impact and potential of the fit note, especially for patients with mental illness.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

A systematic review of quantitative research on traumatic brain injury in India.

Over a quarter of the world's trauma deaths occur in India, with traumatic brain injury (TBI) as the leading cause of death and disability within trauma. With little known about TBI in India, we set out to do a systematic review to characterize the quantitative literature on TBI in India. The following databases were searched from their inception to December 31, 2015: PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and the World Health Organization's Global Health Library, using the keywords: neurotrauma, brain injury, traumatic brain injury, TBI, head injury, and India. Articles were screened by two independent reviewers, with disagreements arbitrated by discussion or a third reviewer. A total of 72 manuscripts were included, encapsulating 19962 patients over 27 years in 14 states of India. The sample-size-weighted mean age was 31.3 years, male-to-female ratio was 3.8:1, and sample-size-weighted mean in-hospital mortality was 24.6%. Age and mortality did not change significantly over time. Road traffic accidents (55.5%) and falls (29.2%) were the most commonly reported mechanisms of injury for TBI in India. The mean quality of reporting on TBI in India was 65.7%, according to the appropriate EQUATOR guideline score. The quality of reporting of quantitative studies published on TBI in India is low, and future methodological excellence should be ensured. The demographics and outcomes identified can be used as an epidemiological baseline for future research on TBI in India. Future research can build upon this platform to develop and refine context-appropriate policy recommendations and treatment protocols.

The impact of armed conflict on adolescent transitions: a systematic review of quantitative research on age of sexual debut, first marriage and first birth in young women under the age of 20years.

BackgroundYoung women in conflict-affected regions are at risk of a number of adverse outcomes as a result of violence, economic deterioration and the breakdown of community structures and services. This paper presents the findings of a systematic review of quantitative literature reporting how key sexual and reproductive health (SRH) outcomes among young women under the age of 20 years are affected by exposure to armed conflict; namely, sexual debut, first marriage and first birth. Increases in these outcomes among young women are all associated with potential negative public health consequences. It also examines and documents possible causal pathways for any changes seen.MethodsTo fit with our inclusion criteria, all reviewed studies included outcomes for comparable populations not exposed to conflict either temporally or spatially. A total of 19 studies with results from 21 countries or territories met our inclusion criteria; seven presented findings on marriage, four on fertility and eight on both of these outcomes. Only one study reporting on sexual debut met our criteria.ResultsFindings show clear evidence of both declines and increases in marriage and childbirth among young women in a range of conflict-affected settings. Several studies that showed increases in marriage below the age of 20 years reported that such increases were concentrated in the younger teenagers. Trends in fertility were predominantly driven by marriage patterns. Suggested causal pathways for the changes observed could be grouped into three categories: involuntary, gender and psycho-social and economic and material factors.ConclusionThe review reveals a paucity of literature on the impact of conflict on SRH outcomes of young women. Further quantitative and qualitative studies are needed to explore how conflict influences SRH events in young women over both the short- and longer-term.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-016-2868-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Determinants of fruit and vegetable intake in low-income children and adolescents.

Although low-income youth are likely to have low or less frequent fruit and vegetable intake, current understanding of the influences on intake in youth is limited. A systematic review of quantitative research on determinants of fruit and vegetable intake among low-income youth (i.e., persons aged <20 years) was conducted. The aims were to identify which determinants have been studied and which are consistently associated with intake. Fifty-eight papers published between 2003 and August 2013 were included. Across studies, 85 unique determinants were identified. Those best supported by evidence were race/ethnicity (with intake consistently higher among Hispanic as compared with African American and white youth), fruit and vegetable preferences, and maternal fruit and vegetable intake. For many potential determinants, the consistency of evidence could not be examined because of a lack of studies. Findings highlight racial/ethnic differences in fruit and vegetable intake and influences on intake that should be considered when designing dietary interventions for low-income youth. Further research on intake determinants in this at-risk population is needed to establish an evidence base to guide interventions.

QUANTITATIVE PATIENT PREFERENCE EVIDENCE FOR HEALTH TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT: A CASE STUDY

We conducted a systematic review of quantitative research regarding patients' preferences, perspectives and values for ventilation among chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. Our objective was to explore the feasibility and desirability of incorporating patient preferences within the health technology assessment (HTA) process by working through a case study. Medical and economic databases were searched for studies published in English from 1990 through March 4, 2011. Studies were selected based on title and abstract. Due to the heterogeneity of the studies, data were analyzed using a narrative synthesis approach. Among 1833 identified citations, twelve studies met our inclusion criteria. Ten of these studies pertained to COPD patient preferences for ventilation. Results indicate that a significant proportion of COPD patients are willing to forgo ventilation, particularly when it is expressed as "indefinite life support" (60-78 percent) rather than as temporary modality. Results indicate that patient preferences for mechanical or noninvasive ventilation cannot be predicted by covariates (e.g., age, quality of life) or by others who are frequently called upon to make decisions are their behalf. We found that it is indeed feasible to conduct a systematic review of quantitative preference-related evidence for an HTA topic. However, the process of conducting this preference-related case study also revealed several challenges because there is a high degree of variation in taxonomy, instrumentation, and study design. Therefore, we do not recommend it as a routine part of the HTA process, but we suggest that it is a promising area to pursue for preference-sensitive technological decisions.

Greenspace and obesity: a systematic review of the evidence

Greenspace is theoretically a valuable resource for physical activity and hence has potential to contribute to reducing obesity and improving health. This paper reports on a systematic review of quantitative research examining the association between objectively measured access to greenspace and (i) Physical activity, (ii) Weight status and (iii) Health conditions related to elevated weight. Literature searches were conducted in SCOPUS, Medline, Embase and PYSCHINFO. Sixty studies met the inclusion criteria and were assessed for methodological quality and strength of the evidence. The majority (68%) of papers found a positive or weak association between greenspace and obesity-related health indicators, but findings were inconsistent and mixed across studies. Several studies found the relationship varied by factors such as age, socioeconomic status and greenspace measure. Developing a theoretical framework which considers the correlates and interactions between different types of greenspace and health would help study design and interpretation of reported findings, as would improvement in quality and consistency of greenspace access measures. Key areas for future research include investigating if and how people actually use greenspace and improving understanding of the mechanisms through which greenspace can improve health and, in particular, if physical activity is one such mechanism.

Post-anaesthetic discharge scoring criteria: A systematic review.

Aim This systematic review investigates the essential components of an effective and feasible scoring system to assess patients following anaesthesia and surgery, thereby enhancing patient safety through timely and appropriate discharge from the Post-Anaesthetic Care Unit. The findings of the evidence synthesis will be used to inform the development of a Post-Anaesthetic Care Unit discharge tool.Methods A systematic review of quantitative research conducted in adult populations on post-anaesthetic discharge assessment strategies utilised in post-anaesthetic care units following any type of surgical procedure. An extensive literature search was constructed to identify all relevant studies published between 1970 and 2010. Studies were appraised and data was extracted by two reviewers using the standardised critical appraisal and data extraction tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute.Results A total of eight studies were included in the review. One randomised controlled trial and four observational studies provided evidence on the effectiveness and feasibility of discharge assessment tools. All studies identified pain, conscious state, and nausea and vomiting as important variables to consider in assessing a patient's readiness for discharge from the post-anaesthetic care unit. Two additional observational studies and a retrospective records analysis investigated the recovery of patients in the post-anaesthetic care unit, providing data on psychomotor and cognitive recovery following anaesthetic.Conclusion There was general agreement amongst the studies that post-anaesthetic care unit discharge assessment should consider levels of pain, conscious state, and nausea and vomiting. Although vital signs were included in all the discharge assessment tools, there was variation in the specific vital signs included within tools, with blood pressure being the only vital sign consistently used. The value of including urine output, oral intake or psychomotor testing in assessing readiness for post-anaesthetic care unit discharge was inconclusive and therefore requires further investigation.Implications for practice Based on the evidence from studies at moderate to high risk of bias analysed in this systematic review, the following recommendations are considered important for the assessment of the readiness of adult patients to be discharged from the post-anaesthetic care unit:• Assessment of pain, conscious state, blood pressure and nausea and vomiting should be made before discharging a patient. Assessment of other vital signs should be considered before discharging a patient from post-anaesthetic care unitImplications for research The synthesised evidence suggests there is limited consensus on criteria for post-anaesthetic care unit discharge assessment and further investigation using sound methodologies is required, especially with regard to patient outcomes. The following recommendations can be made:• Further research should investigate the validity and reliability of assessment variables on post-anaesthetic care unit discharge tools, the implementation of validated post-anaesthetic care unit discharge criteria for assessment of patient readiness for discharge, and, the relationship between post-anaesthetic care unit discharge assessment and patient safety.

Post-anaesthetic discharge scoring criteria: A systematic review

Aim This systematic review investigates the essential components of an effective and feasible scoring system to assess patients following anaesthesia and surgery, thereby enhancing patient safety through timely and appropriate discharge from the Post-Anaesthetic Care Unit. The findings of the evidence synthesis will be used to inform the development of a Post-Anaesthetic Care Unit discharge tool. Methods A systematic review of quantitative research conducted in adult populations on post-anaesthetic discharge assessment strategies utilised in post-anaesthetic care units following any type of surgical procedure. An extensive literature search was constructed to identify all relevant studies published between 1970 and 2010. Studies were appraised and data was extracted by two reviewers using the standardised critical appraisal and data extraction tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Results A total of eight studies were included in the review. One randomised controlled trial and four observational studies provided evidence on the effectiveness and feasibility of discharge assessment tools. All studies identified pain, conscious state, and nausea and vomiting as important variables to consider in assessing a patient‟s readiness for discharge from the post-anaesthetic care unit. Two additional observational studies and a retrospective records analysis investigated the recovery of patients in the post-anaesthetic care unit, providing data on psychomotor and cognitive recovery following anaesthetic. Conclusion There was general agreement amongst the studies that post-anaesthetic care unit discharge assessment should consider levels of pain, conscious state, and nausea and vomiting. Although vital signs were included in all the discharge assessment tools, there was variation in the specific vital signs included within tools, with blood pressure being the only vital sign consistently used. The value of including urine output, oral intake or psychomotor testing in assessing readiness for post-anaesthetic care unit discharge was inconclusive and therefore requires further investigation.

Synthesis of quantitative and qualitative research: an example using Critical Interpretive Synthesis

This paper is a report of a Critical Interpretive Synthesis to synthesize quantitative research, in the form of an effectiveness review and a guideline, with qualitative research to examine the use of morphine to treat cancer-related pain. Critical Interpretive Synthesis is a new method of reviewing, developed from meta-ethnography, which integrates systematic review methodology with a qualitative tradition of enquiry. It has not previously been used specifically to synthesize effectiveness and qualitative literature. Data sources. An existing systematic review of quantitative research and a guideline examining the effectiveness of oral morphine to treat cancer pain were identified. Electronic searches of Medline, CINAHL, Embase, PsychINFO, Health Management Information Consortium database and the Social Science Citation Index to identify qualitative research were carried out in May 2008. Qualitative research papers reporting on the use of morphine to treat cancer pain were identified. The findings of the effectiveness research were used as a framework to guide the translation of findings from qualitative research using an integrative grid. A secondary translation of findings from the qualitative research, not specifically mapped to the effectiveness literature, was guided by the framework. Nineteen qualitative papers were synthesized with the quantitative effectiveness literature, producing 14 synthetic constructs. These were developed into four synthesizing arguments which drew on patients', carers' and healthcare professionals' interpretations of the meaning and context of the use of morphine to treat cancer pain. Critical Interpretive Synthesis can be adapted to synthesize reviews of quantitative research into effectiveness with qualitative research and fits into an existing typology of approaches to synthesizing qualitative and quantitative research.

Physical environmental correlates of childhood obesity: a systematic review

Increasing rates of childhood obesity in the USA and other Western countries are a cause for serious public health concern. Neighborhood and community environments are thought to play a contributing role in the development of obesity among youth, but it is not well understood which types of physical environmental characteristics have the most potential to influence obesity outcomes. This paper reports the results of a systematic review of quantitative research examining built and biophysical environmental variables associated with obesity in children and adolescents through physical activity. Literature searches in PubMed, PsychInfo and Geobase were conducted. Fifteen quantitative studies met the inclusion criteria for this systematic review. The majority of studies were cross-sectional and published after 2005. Overall, few consistent findings emerged. For children, associations between physical environmental variables and obesity differed by gender, age, socioeconomic status, population density and whether reports were made by the parent or child. Access to equipment and facilities, neighborhood pattern (e.g. rural, exurban, suburban) and urban sprawl were associated with obesity outcomes in adolescents. For most environmental variables considered, strong empirical evidence is not yet available. Conceptual gaps, methodological limitations and future research directions are discussed.

Reviews, Systematic Reviews, Overviews: “What’s It All About, Cochrane?”

In the fall of 2008, the Lienhard School of Nursing began a doctor of nursing practice (DNP) program. In the spring 2009 semester, I taught a course with two dear and experienced colleagues on epidemiology through an evidence-based practice lens. As such, the major course assignment was to conduct a systematic (integrative) review on a topic related to the course content. One of the intellectual arguments that ensued among the faculty was whether to include previous systematic reviews related to the topic that the students reviewed in their table of evidence (TOE), a standard part of every integrative review. There were proponents for each point of view. On the one hand, a previous systematic review conducted on the focused clinical question of the students' reviews was an important piece of high-level evidence. On the other hand, one could argue that a new systematic review should include only primary studies. Before discussing the data available on the issue, I should perhaps inform readers of how the DNP faculty at Pace define systematic reviews. There are two major types of systematic reviews of quantitative research. One, an integrative review, is in narrative format, and the other, a meta-analysis, is a statistical summary of evidence on a particular topic. Different from what we have previously known as a narrative literature review, systematic reviews, whether narrative or statistical, have the following characteristics in common: * Detail their search and retrieval methods to find evidence on a clinical question. * Use predetermined criteria to evaluate the level of evidence and quality of each study. * Present a synthesis of findings. * Address implications for practice and recommendations for further research (Levin, 2009, p. 39). Now that we are all on the same page (or at least this page), let's get back to the argument. I have read reviews that include other systematic reviews in their TOE (Oliver, Martin, & McMurdo, 2004) as well as those that include only primary (Nielsen et al., 2005). Taking a scholarly approach, I decided to see if there were any published standards on this question. First, I went to the textbooks and articles that we used in our course. One of those texts, by Melnyk and Fineout-Overholt (2005), contains the following relevant statement: Data are extracted from individual studies (p. 116). A second text (Haynes, Sackett, Guyatt, & Tugwell, 2006) details methods for conducting a systematic review. Haynes and colleagues tell us that the first line of attack in doing a systematic review is to search for and retrieve other systematic reviews on the topic of interest. They also discuss, however, how to extract data from the individual in a review. They do not mention whether to include the previous systematic reviews in the TOE even though they may be discussed in the narrative. Additionally, a relatively recent article by Tarraco (2005), coming from a human resource perspective, seems to indicate that the author of a systematic review would review primary and then integrate findings to generate new ideas and directions for the field (p. 364). Tarraco, however, does not specifically answer the question posed in this column, as he does not discuss how to develop a TOE. Now, I was getting a little frustrated for lack of an answer to the question of whether to include previous systematic reviews in a TOE of new systematic review. …