Adjusting for publication bias in meta-analysis with continuous outcomes: a comparative study

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Author: Almalik, Osama
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Almalik, Osama
author_facet Almalik, Osama
contents Abstract Publication bias has been a problem facing meta-analysts. Methods adjusting for publication bias have been proposed in the literature. Comparative studies for methods adjusting for publication bias are found in the literature, but these studies are limited. We investigated and compared the performance of five methods adjusting for publication bias for the case of continuous outcomes. The methods studied are Copas, PET-PEESE, p-uniform, Trim & Fill and the limit meta-analysis. In addition, the performance of the random-effects meta-analysis using the DerSimonian estimator is also investigated. The analysis was done using a case-study and an extensive simulation study including different scenario's. The Copas and the PET-PEESE were found to be the least biased methods adjusting for publication bias. However, the Copas method, like other Likelihood-based methods, can have convergence issues. In addition, the PET-PEESE method is robust in case of heteroscedasticity, making the PET-PEESE method a preferable technique to adjust for publication bias.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_06309
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Adjusting for publication bias in meta-analysis with continuous outcomes: a comparative study
Almalik, Osama
Applications
Abstract Publication bias has been a problem facing meta-analysts. Methods adjusting for publication bias have been proposed in the literature. Comparative studies for methods adjusting for publication bias are found in the literature, but these studies are limited. We investigated and compared the performance of five methods adjusting for publication bias for the case of continuous outcomes. The methods studied are Copas, PET-PEESE, p-uniform, Trim & Fill and the limit meta-analysis. In addition, the performance of the random-effects meta-analysis using the DerSimonian estimator is also investigated. The analysis was done using a case-study and an extensive simulation study including different scenario's. The Copas and the PET-PEESE were found to be the least biased methods adjusting for publication bias. However, the Copas method, like other Likelihood-based methods, can have convergence issues. In addition, the PET-PEESE method is robust in case of heteroscedasticity, making the PET-PEESE method a preferable technique to adjust for publication bias.
title Adjusting for publication bias in meta-analysis with continuous outcomes: a comparative study
topic Applications
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.06309