Assessment of methodological quality and sources of variation in the magnitude of vaccine efficacy: a systematic review of studies from 1960 to 2005 reporting immunization with Moraxella bovis vaccines in young cattle.

A review was conducted of all identified literature evaluating Moraxella bovis vaccines efficacy in preventing pinkeye in beef calves. From 292 publications identified by the search, data on 123 unique vaccine-to-control comparisons were extracted from 38 studies published in English from 1960 to 2005. Descriptive analysis was performed and an analysis of sources of variation evaluated. Use of methods to control bias such as randomization and blinding were associated with decreased vaccine efficacy. Only 15 trials reported using randomization and blinding. The authors conclude that when designing and reporting veterinary vaccination studies, researchers must include methodological quality information necessary to judge the evidence produced from the study.