Fixed or Random Effects Meta-analysis? Common Methodological Issues in Systematic Reviews of Effectiveness

Overview

Journal Int J Evid Based Healthc

Specialty Health Services

Date 2015 Sep 11

PMID 26355603

Citations 280

Authors

Catalin Tufanaru

Zachary Munn

Matthew Stephenson

Edoardo Aromataris

Affiliations

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Abstract

Systematic review aims to systematically identify, critically appraise, and summarize all relevant studies that match predefined criteria and answer predefined questions. The most common type of systematic review is that assessing the effectiveness of an intervention or therapy. In this article, we discuss some of the common methodological issues that arise when conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of effectiveness data, including issues related to study designs, meta-analysis, and the use and interpretation of effect sizes.

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