Cochrane reviews with no trials: pointless or pragmatic?

Abstract

The Cochrane Collaboration is internationally renowned as the leading organization for the production of systematic reviews of healthcare interventions. Since the mid-1990s, Cochrane reviews have become synonymous with randomized controlled trials (RCTs), contributing to the elevation of RCTs as the gold standard for research in healthcare. However, this article demonstrates how the inclusion of non-randomized data in Cochrane Reviews is now up for debate. The Cochrane Review of 'Caesarean section for non-medical reasons at term' is the first from the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group (PCG) to strongly recommend research methods, other than an RCT, to gather future data. Here, two of the review authors assert that Cochrane reviews with no trials may have their place in the work of the PCG.