Increased risks for random errors are common in outcomes graded as high certainty of evidence

Ref ID 682
First Author G. Gartlehner
Journal JOURNAL OF CLINICAL EPIDEMIOLOGY
Year Of Publishing 2019
URL https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2018.10.009
Keywords • General medical
• Cochrane
• Author
• Error
• Outcomes
Problem(s) • Following guidelines is no guarantee of a rigorous systematic review
• Errors in effect estimate calculations or data synthesis
• Data extraction errors and double counting
Article Type Empirical
Article Subtype Meta-epidemiological analysis
First Author Country United States
Checklists • AMSTAR 2
Aim To assess the risk for random errors in dichotomous outcomes graded as high certainty of evidence from a random selection of Cochrane reviews.
Level of Investigation Analytical
Summary of Findings Over one-third (38%) of outcomes rated as high certainty of evidence based on GRADE had increased risks for type I or type II errors. Analysis of predictive factors increased risk of errors indicated that in the majority of cases investigators responsible for rating certainty of evidence did not adhere to current guidance, particularly around imprecision.
Number of systematic reviews included 100
Number of eligible systematic reviews assessed 100