Due to the unprecedented speed and rate of publishing regarding COVID-19, Palayew et al. raised concerns about the quality of the emerging evidence base and the risk of harmful misinformation being spread.

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

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Palayew et al. used single-query PubMed searches to compare journal articles about COVID-19, Ebola, and cardiovascular diseases. For COVID-19 and Ebola, they examined articles published during the first 12 weeks after each disease was declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). The median acceptance time was 6 days for COVID-19 articles and 15 days for Ebola articles.

Palayew et al.'s PubMed Comparison of COVID-19, Ebola, and Cardiovascular Disease Articles

Recommendation 1: Palayew et al. recommend establishing new journal editors’ standards during large-scale public health emergencies

Recommendation 1: Palayew et al. 

Recommendation 2: Palayew et al. recommend requiring peer reviewers be adequately trained before undertaking reviews

Recommendation 2: Palayew et al.

Recommendation 4: Palayew et al. recommend maintaining and investing in the further development of curated databases

Recommendation 4: Palayew et al. 

“In light of the risk of bias with curation, it is vital to ensure that there are multiple independent quality-assured systems that are funded on an ongoing basis. This may require an element of public funding rather than solely or largely relying on the private sector.”

Palayew et al. note the risk of bias in curated databases and suggest multiple independent QA systems

When it comes to developing more literature reviews, Palayew et al. raise concerns about “duplication of reviews” which they suggest can be addressed by better coordination

Palayew et al. raise concerns about “duplication of reviews” 

Palayew et al. cite the COVID-19 Cochrane Library and the COVID-END database maintained by McMaster University as good examples of efforts to synthesize COVID-19 literature.

Palayew et al.'s Examples of COVID-19 Literature Synthesis Databases

Palayew et al. recommend prioritizing funding, maintenance, and access to literature databases and search engines.

Palayew et al.'s Recommendation to Prioritize Funding for Literature Databases

Palayew et al. recommend commissioning and publishing more scoping, narrative, and systematic reviews to evaluate and synthesize COVID-19-related evidence.

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