Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Tu, Yu-Kang

Titel

Linear mixed model approach to network meta-analysis for continuous outcomes in periodontal research

Ist Teil von

• Journal of clinical periodontology, 2015-02, Vol.42 (2), p.204-212

Ort / Verlag

United States: Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2015

Quelle

Wiley-Blackwell Journals

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Aim Analysing continuous outcomes for network meta‐analysis by means of linear mixed models is a great challenge, as it requires statistical software packages to specify special patterns of model error variance and covariance structure. This article demonstrates a non‐Bayesian approach to network meta‐analysis for continuous outcomes in periodontal research with a special focus on the adjustment of data dependency. Data Seventeen studies on guided tissue regeneration were used to illustrate how the proposed linear mixed models for network meta‐analysis of continuous outcomes. Methods & Results Arm‐based network meta‐analysis use treatment arms from each study as the unit of analysis; when patients are randomly assigned to each arm, data are deemed independent and therefore no adjustment is required for multi‐arm trials. Trial‐based network meta‐analysis use treatment contrasts as the unit of analysis, and therefore treatment contrasts within a multi‐arm trial are not independent. This data dependency occurs also in split‐mouth studies, and adjustments for data dependency are therefore required. Conclusions Arm‐based analysis is the preferred approach to network meta‐analysis, when all included studies use the parallel group design and some compare more than two treatment arms. When included studies used designs that yield dependent data, the trial‐based analysis is the preferred approach.