Medical Writing Statistics A medical writer's guide to meta-analysis

Volume 25, Issue 3 - Statistics

A medical writer's guide to meta-analysis

Abstract

Meta-analysis is a statistical technique for summarising the results of multiple studies in a quantitative manner. It should not be confused with a systematic review, though in practice the two are often found together. The main pitfalls with meta-analyses are being sure that the studies being combined are similar enough that it makes sense to combine them, and being sure that all relevant studies have been included.

Download the full article

References

  1. Higgins JPT, Thompson SG, Deeks JJ, Altman DG. Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses. BMJ. 2003;327:557–60.
  2. Annane D, Bellissant E, Bollaert E, Briegel J, Keh D, Kupfer Y. Corticosteroids for severe sepsis and septic shock: a systematic review and meta-analysis BMJ. 2004;329(7464):480.
  3. Morgan, Paul (@drpaulmorgan). “@statsguyuk Very! The hostresponse mechanism is a mix of genetics (cytokine response) and the individual bug. Lots of interesting research!”. [Tweet,10 June 2016, 8:12 AM]. Available from: https://twitter.com/drpaulmorgan/status/741166150147538944
  4. Mozaffarian D, Micha R, Wallace S. Effects on Coronary Heart Disease of Increasing Polyunsaturated Fat in Place of Saturated Fat: A Systematic Review and Meta- Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. PLoS Med. 2010;7(3):e1000252.
  5. Jacobs A. Zombie statistics on half of all clinical trials unpublished. [Blogpost; 29 August 2015]. Available from: http://www.statsguy.co.uk/zombie-statisticson-half-of-all-clinical-trials-unpublished
  6. Song F, Parekh S, Hooper L, Loke YK, Ryder J, Sutton AJ, et al. Dissemination and publication of research findings: an updated review of related biases. Health Technol Assess. 2010;14(8).
  7. Jacobs A. Cochrane review on industry sponsorship. [Blogpost; 20 December 2012]. Available from: http://dianthus.co.uk/cochrane-review-on-industry-sponsorship

Search

Articles

Statistics for medical writers
President's Message
EMWA News
History of biostatistics
The illusion of certainty and the certainty of illusion
Never P alone: The value of estimates and confidence intervals
A medical writer's guide to meta-analysis
Study design made easy
Statistical analyses and methods in the published literature: The SAMPL guidelines
How to interpret and report the results from multivariable analyses
Biostatistics and medical writing: Synergy in preparing clinical trials documents
Best friends forever: A pattern of collaboration between medical writers and biostatisticians within the Russian CRO
Where have all the UK entry level pharmaceutical regulatory medical writing jobs gone?
News from the EMA
Journal Watch
In the Bookstores
The Webscout
Good Writing Practice
Medical Communications
Getting Your Foot in the Door
Lingua Franca and Beyond
Gained in Translation
Teaching Medical Writing
Profile: An interview with Professor Peter Jüni on methodology and statistics in scientific manuscripts
Out On Our Own

Links

The Write Stuff Archive Contact Instructions for Authors Article Template (Word) Journal Policies

Editoral Board

Editor-in-Chief

Raquel Billiones

Co-Editors

Evguenia Alechine

Jonathan Pitt

Managing Editor

Victoria White

Associate Editors

Anuradha Alahari

Jennifer Bell

Nicole Bezuidenhout

Claire Chang

Barbara Grossman

Sarah Milner

John Plant

Sampoorna Rappaz

Amy Whereat

Section Editors

Daniela Kamir

AI/Automation

Jennifer Bell

Biotechnology

Nicole Bezuidenhout 

Digital Communication

Somsuvro Basu

EMWA News 

Ana Sofia Correia 

Gained in Translation

Ivana Turek

Getting Your Foot in the Door

Wendy Kingdom / Amy Whereat

Good Writing Practice

Alison McIntosh 

In the Bookstores

Maria Kołtowska-Häggström

Lingua Franca and Beyond

Maddy Dyer

Publications

Lisa Chamberlain-James

Medical Communications/Writing for Patients

Payal Bhatia

Medical Devices

Evguenia Alechine

My First Medical Writing

Anuradha Alahari

News from the EMA

Adriana Rocha

Freelancing

Tiziana von Bruchhausen

Pharmacovigilance

Clare ChangZuo Yen Lee 

Regulatory Matters

Sam Hamilton

Regulatory Public Disclosure

Claire Gudex

Teaching Medical Writing

Louisa Ludwig-Begall / Sarah Kabani

The Crofter: Sustainable Communications

Louisa Marcombes

Veterinary Writing

Editors Emeritus

Elise Langdon-Neuner

Phil Leventhal

Layout Designer

Chris Monk