Coronavirus (COVID-19) - Cochrane resources and news

A pressing need for Cochrane Canada's evidence

To help meet the urgent healthcare evidence needs of policymakers, guideline developers and clinicians here in Canada and around the world, members of Cochrane Canada continue to lead the way by identifying priority areas for action. Through their groundbreaking work, our members have and continue to generate new evidence that advances the global understanding of COVID-19, ultimately leading to faster and better solutions for all. This includes:

Physical distancing, face masks, and eye protection to prevent person-to-person transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Commissioned by the World Health Organization. Access the review here.

Ventilation techniques and risk for transmission of coronavirus disease, including COVID-19: a living systematic review of multiple streams of evidence. Commissioned by the World Health Organization. Access the review here.

Safe management of bodies of deceased persons with suspected or confirmed COVID-19: a rapid systematic review. Commissioned by the World Health Organization. Access the review here.

COVID-19 and antimicrobial resistance: parallel and interacting health emergencies. Access the evidence here.

Using GRADE in situations of emergencies and urgencies: certainty in evidence and recommendations matters during the COVID-19 pandemic, now more than ever and no matter what. Access the evidence here.

Timely and impactful evidence for you

We know that basic science research and innovation are vital to containing and mitigating the effects of the rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic. Cochrane continues to respond promptly to this unprecedented global health crisis by making our health evidence more accessible to those needing to make informed decisions, including healthcare workers, researchers, policymakers and guideline developers, and the general public.

Below is a special collection of Cochrane Reviews on topics related to the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Each review has been pulled directly from the Cochrane Library. In addition to providing readers with access to this timely evidence, we have included each review's Altmetric attention score, or the weighted measure of attention each review has received in the media, on social media, in policy documents, and other online sources.

Antibody tests for identification of current and past infection with SARS‐CoV‐2

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) virus and resulting COVID‐19 pandemic present important diagnostic challenges. Several diagnostic strategies are available to identify current infection, rule out infection, identify people in need of care escalation, or to test for past infection and immune response. Serology tests to detect the presence of antibodies to SARS‐CoV‐2 aim to identify previous SARS‐CoV‐2 infection, and may help to confirm the presence of current infection. Access the review here. View the review's Altmetric score here.

Universal screening for SARS-CoV-2 infection: a rapid review

An unknown proportion of infected individuals never experience COVID‐19 symptoms although they are infectious, that is, they remain asymptomatic. Those who develop the disease, go through a presymptomatic period during which they are infectious. Universal screening for SARS‐CoV‐2 infections to detect individuals who are infected before they present clinically, could therefore be an important measure to contain the spread of the disease. Access the review here. View the review's Altmetric score here.

Convalescent plasma or hyperimmune immunoglobulin for people with COVID‐19: a living systematic review

Convalescent plasma and hyperimmune immunoglobulin may reduce mortality in patients with viral respiratory diseases, and are currently being investigated in trials as potential therapy for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19). A thorough understanding of the current body of evidence regarding the benefits and risks is required. Access the review here. View the review's Altmetric score here.

Rapid, point-of-care antigen and molecular-based tests for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) and the resulting COVID‐19 pandemic present important diagnostic challenges. Several diagnostic strategies are available to identify or rule out current infection, identify people in need of care escalation, or to test for past infection and immune response. Point‐of‐care antigen and molecular tests to detect current SARS‐CoV‐2 infection have the potential to allow earlier detection and isolation of confirmed cases compared to laboratory‐based diagnostic methods, with the aim of reducing household and community transmission. Access the review here. View the review's Altmetric score here.

Download the Cochrane Library app today

The Cochrane Library App presents the latest evidence from the Cochrane Library in a convenient, easy to navigate format. Download the app today and access the gold standard in evidence-based health information.

All content in the app is free and new issues will be uploaded regularly.

Additional resources

Cochrane Canada is encouraging its friends, partners and collaborators to continue monitoring other reliable sources of information on COVID-19. These include: