Scope of our work

As described below, the CIDG is particularly interested in reviews relevant to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in infectious diseases, maternal mortality, and child health. This interest is reflected in our processes for assessing new titles.

Scope

The Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group's scope covers healthcare interventions for communicable diseases. The focus is mainly, but not exclusively, on diseases that affect people in low-income and middle-income countries. These diseases include malaria, acute diarrhoea, tuberculosis, helminth infections, scabies and headlice, and other protozoan, bacterial, and viral infections that are found predominantly but not exclusively in tropical and subtropical regions of the world.

Since February 2015, we are responsible for the HIV/AIDS portfolio of reviews. 

We have areas of common interest with the Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group (tropical infectious diseases causing acute respiratory infections), Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group (parasitic infections during pregnancy),  and the Cochrane Developmental, Psychosocial and Learning Problems Group (parasitic infection control in relation to nutrition and cognition outcomes).

Non-tropical infectious conditions, such as nosocomial infections, bacteraemia, meningococcal disease, sepsis, septic shock, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, fall outside the scope of the Group. Reviews of interventions for snake bites which used to fall within our scope are now managed by the Cochrane Injuries Group.