Literature search
The search was performed in PubMed (1966-present), EMBASE (1980-present), and the Cochrane Library. The databases were last searched on February 23, 2018. Our search strategy was formulated with the help of a medical research librarian.
The search string used in PubMed was: ((dimethyl sulfoxide) OR DMSO) AND ((((((administration and dosage) OR adverse reactions) OR alternate effects) OR secondary response) OR toxicology) OR side effects)). The search was restricted to humans. The search string was adapted to EMBASE and Cochrane Library using the same search-words as abovementioned.
The search string used in EMBASE was: ((dmso or dimethyl sulfoxide) and ((side effect or toxicology or secondary response or alternate effects or alternate reactions or (administration and dosage)) and (dmso or dimethyl sulfoxide))).mp. The search was restricted to humans, articles and Medline journals were excluded.
The search string used in Cochrane was: (adverse drug events and dimethyl sulfoxide). The search was restricted to trials.