Miranda S Cumpston1, Joanne E McKenzie1, James Thomas2, Sue E Brennan1. 1. School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia. 2. EPPI-Centre, UCL Social Research Institute, University College London, London, WC1H 0NR, UK.
Abstract
Introduction: Systematic reviews involve synthesis of research to inform decision making by clinicians, consumers, policy makers and researchers. While guidance for synthesis often focuses on meta-analysis, synthesis begins with specifying the 'PICO for each synthesis' (i.e. the criteria for deciding which populations, interventions, comparators and outcomes are eligible for each analysis). Synthesis may also involve the use of statistical methods other than meta-analysis (e.g. vote counting based on the direction of effect, presenting the range of effects, combining P values) augmented by visual display, tables and text-based summaries. This study examines these two aspects of synthesis. Objectives: To identify and describe current practice in systematic reviews of health interventions in relation to: (i) approaches to grouping and definition of PICO characteristics for synthesis; and (ii) methods of summary and synthesis when meta-analysis is not used. Methods: We will randomly sample 100 systematic reviews of the quantitative effects of public health and health systems interventions published in 2018 and indexed in the Health Evidence and Health Systems Evidence databases. Two authors will independently screen citations for eligibility. Two authors will confirm eligibility based on full text, then extract data for 20% of reviews on the specification and use of PICO for synthesis, and the presentation and synthesis methods used (e.g. statistical synthesis methods, tabulation, visual displays, structured summary). The remaining reviews will be confirmed as eligible and data extracted by a single author. We will use descriptive statistics to summarise the specification of methods and their use in practice. We will compare how clearly the PICO for synthesis is specified in reviews that primarily use meta-analysis and those that do not. Conclusion: This study will provide an understanding of current practice in two important aspects of the synthesis process, enabling future research to test the feasibility and impact of different approaches. Copyright:
Introduction: Systematic reviews involve synthesis of research to inform decision making by clinicians, consumers, policy makers and researchers. While guidance for synthesis often focuses on meta-analysis, synthesis begins with specifying the 'PICO for each synthesis' (i.e. the criteria for deciding which populations, interventions, comparators and outcomes are eligible for each analysis). Synthesis may also involve the use of statistical methods other than meta-analysis (e.g. vote counting based on the direction of effect, presenting the range of effects, combining P values) augmented by visual display, tables and text-based summaries. This study examines these two aspects of synthesis. Objectives: To identify and describe current practice in systematic reviews of health interventions in relation to: (i) approaches to grouping and definition of PICO characteristics for synthesis; and (ii) methods of summary and synthesis when meta-analysis is not used. Methods: We will randomly sample 100 systematic reviews of the quantitative effects of public health and health systems interventions published in 2018 and indexed in the Health Evidence and Health Systems Evidence databases. Two authors will independently screen citations for eligibility. Two authors will confirm eligibility based on full text, then extract data for 20% of reviews on the specification and use of PICO for synthesis, and the presentation and synthesis methods used (e.g. statistical synthesis methods, tabulation, visual displays, structured summary). The remaining reviews will be confirmed as eligible and data extracted by a single author. We will use descriptive statistics to summarise the specification of methods and their use in practice. We will compare how clearly the PICO for synthesis is specified in reviews that primarily use meta-analysis and those that do not. Conclusion: This study will provide an understanding of current practice in two important aspects of the synthesis process, enabling future research to test the feasibility and impact of different approaches. Copyright:
Authors: Tammy C Hoffmann; Paul P Glasziou; Isabelle Boutron; Ruairidh Milne; Rafael Perera; David Moher; Douglas G Altman; Virginia Barbour; Helen Macdonald; Marie Johnston; Sarah E Lamb; Mary Dixon-Woods; Peter McCulloch; Jeremy C Wyatt; An-Wen Chan; Susan Michie Journal: BMJ Date: 2014-03-07
Authors: G J Melendez-Torres; A O'Mara-Eves; J Thomas; G Brunton; J Caird; M Petticrew Journal: Res Synth Methods Date: 2016-11-17 Impact factor: 5.273
Authors: Julian P T Higgins; José A López-López; Betsy J Becker; Sarah R Davies; Sarah Dawson; Jeremy M Grimshaw; Luke A McGuinness; Theresa H M Moore; Eva A Rehfuess; James Thomas; Deborah M Caldwell Journal: BMJ Glob Health Date: 2019-01-25
Authors: Matthew J Page; Larissa Shamseer; Douglas G Altman; Jennifer Tetzlaff; Margaret Sampson; Andrea C Tricco; Ferrán Catalá-López; Lun Li; Emma K Reid; Rafael Sarkis-Onofre; David Moher Journal: PLoS Med Date: 2016-05-24 Impact factor: 11.069
Authors: Francisco Javier Martin-Vega; Maria Jesus Vinolo-Gil; Veronica Perez-Cabezas; Manuel Rodríguez-Huguet; Cristina Garcia-Munoz; Gloria Gonzalez Medina Journal: J Pers Med Date: 2022-07-17
Authors: Maria Jesus Vinolo-Gil; Manuel Rodríguez-Huguet; Cristina García-Muñoz; Gloria Gonzalez-Medina; Francisco Javier Martin-Vega; Rocío Martín-Valero Journal: J Clin Med Date: 2022-06-28 Impact factor: 4.964
Authors: María Del Puerto González Garrido; Cristina Garcia-Munoz; Manuel Rodríguez-Huguet; Francisco Javier Martin-Vega; Gloria Gonzalez-Medina; Maria Jesus Vinolo-Gil Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-09-28 Impact factor: 4.614