Identifying prior evidence for new trials (REVEAL): guidance for clinical researchers

Conducting a systematic literature review before initiating a new clinical trial can prevent research waste and provide critical justification and valuable insights for designing the trial. Clinical researchers, however, typically lack the resources and experience to conduct systematic reviews. This paper introduces the REVEAL (prior evidence for new trials) guidance—a rigorously developed, user friendly, step-by-step guide for clinical researchers to rapidly, efficiently, and systematically review the literature when planning a trial. REVEAL consists of a detailed guidance document to navigate the process, a structured report form to document the search and findings, and a worked example for practical orientation.