Users' guide to the surgical literature: how to perform a high-quality literature search.

The article "Users" guide to the surgical literature: how to perform a "literature search" was published in 2003, but the continuing technological developments in databases and search filters have rendered that guide out of date. The present guide fills an existing gap in this area; it provides the reader with strategies for developing a searchable clinical question, creating an efficient search strategy,accessing appropriate databases, and skillfully retrieving the best evidence to address the research question.