Search strategies for: How can e-health interventions reduce the ‘syndemic’ of HIV/STIs and sexual risk, substance use and mental ill health among men who have sex with men?

The search strategy included strings of terms, synonyms and controlled vocabulary terms (where available) to reflect two concepts: [1] Men who have sex with men (including bisexual and trans men and women), and [2] E-health (including hardware and software means of delivery).

Key search terms were determined by using published strategies covering LGBT+ population and e-health interventions, and tested using a systematic approach. The draft search strategy was compiled in the OvidSP Medline database by an experienced information specialist, and refined with the project team until the results retrieved reflected the scope of the project. The agreed OvidSP Medline search was subsequently adapted (to incorporate database-specific syntax and controlled vocabularies of each database) and applied to the following information sources: ProQuest Applied Social Sciences Index & Abstracts (ASSIA), Campbell Library, EBSCO CINAHL Plus, Wiley Cochrane Library, CRD Databases, EPPI-Centre Database of Health Promotion Research (Bibliomap), ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, OvidSP EconLit, OvidSP Embase, OvidSP Global Health, OvidSP HMIC (Health Management Information Consortium), ProQuest International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS), Ovid MEDLINE(R), OvidSP PsycInfo, Web of Science Science