Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34838030›Full record

SynthesisHarm reduction journal2021

Reporting and methodological quality of systematic literature reviews evaluating the associations between e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking behaviors: a systematic quality review.

Mimi M Kim, Lynley Pound, Isabella Steffensen, Geoffrey M Curtin

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Harm reduction journal, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Health Effects of Electronic Cigarettes: An Umbrella Review and Methodological Considerations.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022
    Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Mimi M KimScientific and Regulatory Affairs, RAI Services Company, 401 North Main Street, Winston-Salem, NC, 27101, USA. kimm1@rjrt.com.ORCID 0000-0002-1352-9670
Lynley PoundThera-Business, Kanata, ON, Canada.
Isabella SteffensenThera-Business, Kanata, ON, Canada.
Geoffrey M CurtinScientific and Regulatory Affairs, RAI Services Company, 401 North Main Street, Winston-Salem, NC, 27101, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionSeveral published systematic reviews have examined the potential associations between e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking, but their methodological and/or reporting quality have not yet been assessed. This systematic quality review followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and AMSTAR (A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews) 2 to evaluate the quality of systematic reviews investigating potential associations between e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking. MATERIALS AND

methodsPubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched from 01 January 2007 to 24 June 2020. Methodological quality was assessed using AMSTAR 2, and reporting quality was assessed using PRISMA guidelines.

resultsOf 331 potentially relevant systematic reviews, 20 met predefined inclusion criteria. Most reviews (n = 15; 75%) reported on e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking cessation, while three reported on e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking initiation (15%); and two reported on cigarette smoking initiation and cessation (10%). According to AMSTAR 2 guidelines, 18 of the 20 reviews (90%) were "critically low" in overall confidence of the results, while two were ranked "low." Additionally, reporting quality varied across the reviews, with only 60% reporting at least half of the PRISMA items. DISCUSSION: Methodological limitations were identified across reviews examining potential associations between e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking behaviors, indicating that findings from these reviews should be interpreted with caution.

conclusionsFuture systematic reviews in this field should strive to adhere to AMSTAR 2 and PRISMA guidelines, to provide high quality syntheses of the available data with transparent and complete reporting.

Indexed as

Cigarette SmokingElectronic Nicotine Delivery SystemsVapingHumansResearch ReportAMSTAR 2E-cigarettesMethodological qualityPRISMA

Identifiers

PMID34838030
PMCPMC8627036

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.