Enhancing the quality of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Journal article

Summary: Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are often considered the highest level in evidence hierarchies, and therefore are often drawn upon when considering changes in policy. Despite journals implementing measures aiming to enhance the quality of systematic reviews they publish, the authorship raise concerns about the quality of existing and ongoing systematic reviews, particularly relating to transparency and bias minimisation. Building on the current guidelines, standards and tools, we suggest a ‘meta checklist’ which aims to maximise methodologically sound, unbiased and reproducible reviews of the best scientific quality while considering feasibility throughout the process.

Authors: Strawbridge, R; Sharma, D; Kisely, S; Cristea, IA; Young, AH

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Journal: BJPsych Open
• Volume: 11
• Issue: 6
• Article number: e266
• Publication date: 2025-11-04
• Acceptance date: 2025-09-12
• DOI: 10.1192/bjo.2025.10876
• EISSN: 2056-4724
• ISSN: 2056-4724
• Language: English
• Keywords: bias; methodological rigour; evidence; quality; meta-analysis; Systematic review; guideline