A guide to understanding meta-analysis

Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy

Volumn 41, Issue 7, 2011, Pages 496-504

  Israel, Heidi ^a   Richter, Randy R ^a  

^a SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Forest plot; Literature review; Statistical analysis; Systematic review

Indexed keywords

EID: 79959954064     PISSN: 01906011     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2519/jospt.2011.3333     Document Type: Review

References (61)

1. Ada L, Dorsch S, Canning CG. Strengthening interventions increase strength and improve activity after stroke: a systematic review. Aust J Physiother. 2006;52:241-248. (Pubitemid 44941645)
2. Alexander LD, Gilman DR, Brown DR, Brown JL, Houghton PE. Exposure to low amounts of ultrasound energy does not improve soft tissue shoulder pathology: a systematic review. Phys Ther. 2010;90:14-25. http://dx.doi.org/10.2522/ ptj.20080272
3. American Physical Therapy Association. APTA Vision Statement for Physical Therapy 2020. Available at: http://www.apta.org/ AM/Template.cfm?Section= Vision-20201&T emplate=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay. cfm&TPLID= 285&ContentID=32061. Accessed July 22, 2000.
4. Bax L, Yu LM, Ikeda N, Moons KG. A systematic comparison of software dedicated to meta-analysis of causal studies. BMC Med Res Methodol. 2007;7:40. http://dx.doi. org/10.1186/1471-2288-7-40
5. Berlin JA, Santanna J, Schmid CH, Szczech LA, Feldman HI. Individual patient- versus group-level data meta-regressions for the investigation of treatment effect modifiers: ecological bias rears its ugly head. Stat Med. 2002;21:371-387. (Pubitemid 34144648)
6. Bhandari M, Devereaux PJ, Montori V, Cina C, Tandan V, Guyatt GH. Users' guide to the surgical literature: how to use a systematic literature review and meta-analysis. Can J Surg. 2004;47:60-67. (Pubitemid 38233101)
7. Bhandari M, Montori VM, Devereaux PJ, Wilczynski NL, Morgan D, Haynes RB. Doubling the impact: publication of systematic review articles in orthopaedic journals. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2004;86-A:1012-1016. (Pubitemid 38619803)
8. Bjordal JM, Johnson MI, Lopes-Martins RA, Bogen B, Chow R, Ljunggren AE. Short-term efficacy of physical interventions in osteoarthritic knee pain. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised placebo-controlled trials. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2007;8:51. http:// dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2474-8-51
9. Bloch J. Interpreting odds ratios and logistic regression: a neccessity for evidence-based practice. Am J Nurse Pract. 2008;12:39-43.
10. Bolland MJ, Grey A, Reid IR. The randomised controlled trial to meta-analysis ratio: original data versus systematic reviews in the medical literature. N Z Med J. 2007;120:U2804.
11. Borenstein M, Hedges L, Higgins J, Rothstein H. Introduction to Meta-Analysis. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons; 2009.
12. Carey JL, Dunn WR, Dahm DL, Zeger SL, Spindler KP. A systematic review of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with autograft compared with allograft. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2009;91:2242-2250. http://dx.doi.org/10.2106/ JBJS.I.00610
13. Chan KS, Morton SC, Shekelle PG. Systematic reviews for evidence-based management: how to find them and what to do with them. Am J Manag Care. 2004;10:806-812. (Pubitemid 39518526)
14. Chung KC, Burns PB, Kim HM. A practical guide to meta-analysis. J Hand Surg Am. 2006;31:1671-1678. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j. jhsa.2006.09.002 (Pubitemid 44834567)
15. Clare HA, Adams R, Maher CG. A systematic review of efficacy of McKenzie therapy for spinal pain. Aust J Physiother. 2004;50:209-216. (Pubitemid 39662672)
16. Cochrane Collaboration. Glossary of Terms in The Cochrane Collaboration Version 4.2.5. Available at: http://www.cochrane.org/sites/default/files/ uploads/glossary.pdf. Accessed March 22, 2005.
17. Cohen J. Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioural Sciences. 2nd ed. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc; 1988.
18. Cohn LD, Becker BJ. How meta-analysis increases statistical power. Psychol Methods. 2003;8:243-253. http://dx.doi. org/10.1037/1082-989X.8.3.243 (Pubitemid 37268945)
19. Cuijpers P, van Straten A, Warmerdam L. Problem solving therapies for depression: a meta-analysis. Eur Psychiatry. 2007;22:9-15. http:// dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpsy.2006.11.001 (Pubitemid 46162183)
20. Davey Smith G, Egger M, Phillips A. Meta-analysis. Beyond the grand mean? BMJ. 1997;315:1610-1614. (Pubitemid 27522409)
21. Deeks J, Higgins JP, Altman D. Analysing data and undertaking meta-analyses. In: Higgins JP, Green S, eds. Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons; 2008:243-296.
22. Deeks JJ, Altman D, Bradburn M. Statistical methods for examining heterogeneity and combining results from several studies in meta-analysis. In: Egger M, Smith GD, Altman D, eds. Systematic Reviews in Health Care: Meta- Analysis in Context. London, UK: BMJ Books; 2001:285-312.
23. Doll H, Carney S. Statistical approaches to uncertainty: P values and confidence intervals unpacked. Equine Vet J. 2007;39:275-276. (Pubitemid 351716164)
24. Eysenck HJ. Meta-analysis of best-evidence synthesis? J Eval Clin Pract. 1995;1:29-36.
25. Feinstein AR. Meta-analysis: statistical alchemy for the 21st century. J Clin Epidemiol. 1995;48:71-79.
26. Fleiss JL. The statistical basis of meta-analysis. Stat Methods Med Res. 1993;2:121-145.
27. Glass GV. Primary, secondary, and meta-analysis of research. Educ Res. 1976;5:3-8.
28. Guyatt G, Rennie D. Users' Guides to the Medical Literature: A Manual for Evidence-Based Clinical Practice. Chicago, IL: American Medical Association; 2002.
29. Hedges LV, Pigott TD. The power of statistical tests in meta-analysis. Psychol Methods. 2001;6:203-217. (Pubitemid 33600378)
30. Higgins JP, Thompson SG, Deeks JJ, Altman DG. Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses. BMJ. 2003;327:557-560. http://dx.doi. org/10.1136/bmj.327.7414. 557 (Pubitemid 37088507)
31. Kane RL, Saleh KJ, Wilt TJ, Bershadsky B. The functional outcomes of total knee arthroplasty. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2005;87:1719-1724. http:// dx.doi.org/10.2106/JBJS.D.02714 (Pubitemid 41061189)
32. Khan RJ, Fick D, Keogh A, Crawford J, Brammar T, Parker M. Treatment of acute achilles tendon ruptures. A meta-analysis of randomized, controlled trials. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2005;87:2202-2210. http://dx.doi.org/10.2106/ JBJS.D.03049 (Pubitemid 41407544)
33. Lau J, Ioannidis JP, Schmid CH. Summing up evidence: one answer is not always enough. Lancet. 1998;351:123-127. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/ S0140-6736(97)08468-7 (Pubitemid 28026648)
34. Lewis S, Clarke M. Forest plots: trying to see the wood and the trees. BMJ. 2001;322:1479-1480. (Pubitemid 32575420)
35. Liberati A, Altman DG, Tetzlaff J, et al. The PRISMA statement for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of studies that evaluate health care interventions: explanation and elaboration. Ann Intern Med. 2009;151:W65-94.
36. Lipsey M, Wilson D. Practical Meta-Analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2000.
37. Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, Altman DG. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: the PRISMA statement. Ann Intern Med. 2009;151:264-269, W264.
38. Mollon B, da Silva V, Busse JW, Einhorn TA, Bhandari M. Electrical stimulation for long-bone fracture-healing: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2008;90:2322-2330. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.2106/ JBJS.H.00111
39. Montori VM, Kleinbart J, Newman TB, et al. Tips for learners of evidence-based medicine: 2. Measures of precision (confidence intervals). CMAJ. 2004;171:611-615. http://dx.doi. org/10.1503/cmaj.1031667 (Pubitemid 39273939)
40. Patsopoulos NA, Analatos AA, Ioannidis JP. Relative citation impact of various study designs in the health sciences. JAMA. 2005;293:2362-2366. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/ jama.293.19.2362 (Pubitemid 40676758)
41. Pittler MH, Brown EM, Ernst E. Static magnets for reducing pain: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials. CMAJ. 2007;177:736-742. http://dx.doi.org/10.1503/ cmaj.061344 (Pubitemid 47523554)
42. Ried K. Interpreting and understanding meta-analysis graphs-a practical guide. Aust Fam Physician. 2006;35:635-638.
43. Rosenthal R, DiMatteo MR. Meta-analysis: recent developments in quantitative methods for literature reviews. Annu Rev Psychol. 2001;52:59-82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.59 (Pubitemid 33705567)
44. Santamaria LJ, Webster KE. The effect of fatigue on lower-limb biomechanics during single-limb landings: a systematic review. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2010;40:464-473. http://dx.doi. org/10.2519/jospt.2010.3295
45. Schulz KF, Chalmers I, Hayes RJ, Altman DG. Empirical evidence of bias. Dimensions of methodological quality associated with estimates of treatment effects in controlled trials. JAMA. 1995;273:408-412.
46. Shea BJ, Grimshaw JM, Wells GA, et al. Development of AMSTAR: a measurement tool to assess the methodological quality of systematic reviews. BMC Med Res Methodol. 2007;7:10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-7-10
47. Shea BJ, Hamel C, Wells GA, et al. AMSTAR is a reliable and valid measurement tool to assess the methodological quality of systematic reviews. J Clin Epidemiol. 2009;62:1013-1020.
48. Sim J, Reid N. Statistical inference by confidence intervals: issues of interpretation and utilization. Phys Ther. 1999;79:186-195. (Pubitemid 29087002)
49. Sistrom CL, Garvan CW. Proportions, odds, and risk. Radiology. 2004;230:12-19. http://dx.doi. org/10.1148/radiol.2301031028 (Pubitemid 37549777)
50. Sterne JA, Egger M, Moher D. Addressing reporting biases. In: Higgins JP, Green S, eds. Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons; 2008:297-333.
51. Stratford PW. The added value of confidence intervals. Phys Ther. 2010;90:333-335. http:// dx.doi.org/10.2522/ptj.2010.90.3.333
52. Sud S, Douketis J. The devil is in the details...or not? A primer on individual patient data meta-analysis. Evid Based Med. 2009;14:100-101.
53. Sutton AJ, Higgins JP. Recent developments in meta-analysis. Stat Med. 2008;27:625-650. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sim.2934 (Pubitemid 351278810)
54. Thompson SG. Why and how sources of heterogeneity should be investigated. In: Egger M, Davey Smith G, Altman D, eds. Systematic Reviews in Health Care: Meta-Analysis in Context. London, UK: BMJ Publishing Group; 2001:157-175.
55. Thompson SG, Higgins JP. How should meta-regression analyses be undertaken and interpreted? Stat Med. 2002;21:1559-1573. http:// dx.doi.org/10.1002/sim.1187 (Pubitemid 34746063)
56. Thompson SG, Pocock SJ. Can meta-analyses be trusted? Lancet. 1991;338:1127-1130.
57. Wallace BC, Schmid CH, Lau J, Trikalinos TA. Meta-Analyst: software for meta-analysis of binary, continuous and diagnostic data. BMC Med Res Methodol. 2009;9:80. http://dx.doi. org/10.1186/1471-2288-9-80
58. Walton DM, Pretty J, MacDermid JC, Teasell RW. Risk factors for persistent problems following whiplash injury: results of a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2009;39:334-350. http://dx.doi.org/10.2519/ jospt.2009.2765
59. Wood L, Egger M, Gluud LL, et al. Empirical evidence of bias in treatment effect estimates in controlled trials with different interventions and outcomes: meta-epidemiological study. BMJ. 2008;336:601-605. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/ bmj.39465.451748.AD (Pubitemid 351439518)
60. Zhang W, Nuki G, Moskowitz RW, et al. OARSI recommendations for the management of hip and knee osteoarthritis: part III: Changes in evidence following systematic cumulative update of research published through January 2009. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2010;18:476-499. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j. joca.2010.01.013
61. Zlowodzki M, Poolman RW, Kerkhoffs GM, Tornetta P, 3rd, Bhandari M. How to interpret a meta-analysis and judge its value as a guide for clinical practice. Acta Orthop. 2007;78:598-609. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/ 17453670710014284 (Pubitemid 350034935)