THE EFFECT DIRECTION SHOULD BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT WHEN ASSESSING SMALL-STUDY EFFECTS.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Studies with statistically significant results are frequently more likely to be published than those with non-significant results. This phenomenon leads to publication bias or small-study effects and can seriously affect the validity of the conclusion from systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Small-study effects typically appear in a specific direction, depending on whether the outcome of interest is beneficial or harmful, but this direction is rarely taken into account in conventional methods.

Methods

We propose to use directional tests to assess potential small-study effects. The tests are built on a one-sided testing framework based on the existing Egger's regression test. We performed simulation studies to compare the proposed one-sided regression tests, conve

SUBMITTER: Meng Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10014930 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature