The Association between Databases for Indexing Studies Intended for an Exercise Meta-Analysis of Arthritis Randomized Controlled Trials

Objective. The purpose of this study was to determine the database indexing of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for a meta-analysis addressing the effects of exercise on pain and physical function in adults with arthritis and other rheumatic diseases (AORD). Methods. The number, percentage, and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for included articles at initial and follow-up periods were calculated from PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, and DAO databases. The number needed to review (NNR) was also calculated along with the number of articles retrieved by expert review. Cross-referencing from reviews and included articles also occurred. Results. Thirty-four of 36 articles (94.4%, 95% CI, 81.3–99.3) were located by database searching. PubMed and CENTRAL yielded 32 of 36 articles (88.9%, 73.9–96.9). Two articles not identified in any of the other databases were found in either CINAHL or SPORTDicsus. Two other articles were located by scanning the reference lists of review articles. The NNR ranged from 2 (CINAHL) to 118 (SPORTDiscus). More articles were identified in EMBASE at follow-up (36%, 12.1–42.2 versus 86.1%, 70.5–95.3). Conclusions. Searching multiple databases and cross-referencing from reviews was important for identifying RCTs addressing the effects of exercise on pain and physical function in adults with AORD.