| Ref ID | 901 |
| First Author | D. Pieper |
| Journal | SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS |
| Year Of Publishing | 2022 |
| URL | https://systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13643-022-02051-x |
| Keywords |
• Non-Cochrane reviews • Sponsorship bias • Low methodological quality • Vaccination |
| Problem(s) |
• Inadequate analysis of heterogeneity • Single reviewer / lack of double checking • Conflict of interest statement or disclosures for review authors missing • Low methodological (AMSTAR) quality • Financial conflicts of interest of review authors |
| Article Type | Empirical |
| Article Subtype | Cross-sectional survey/Methodological systematic review |
| First Author Country | Germany |
| Checklists |
• AMSTAR 2 |
| Aim | The aim of this study was to compare Systematic Reviews (SRs) of vaccine intervention studies that were sponsored by industry, either through authorship, funding, or a combination thereof, compared to non-industry sources to evaluate whether industry sponsorship influences the methodological quality of SRs of vaccines. |
| Level of Investigation | Analytical |
| Summary of Findings | From 57 included systematic reviews of immunogenicity of vaccines indexed across MEDLINE and EMBASE (Ovid) between 2016 and 2019. The study included 27 industry funded systematic reviews, matched with 30 non-industry funded systematic reviews. The methodological quality (mean AMSTAR 2 summary score) across all 57 systematic reviews was 0.49. Overall, the median AMSTAR 2 summary score was higher for the non-industry funded systematic reviews than for the industry-funded systematic reviews (0.62 vs. 0.36; p < .00001). Lower ratings for industry funded systematic reviews were consistent across all but one AMSTAR 2 item, though significantly lower only for three specific items (data extraction, assessment of heterogeneity, and conflict of interest). |
| Number of systematic reviews included | 57 |
| Number of eligible systematic reviews assessed | 1947 |
| Treatment impacted | No |
| Treatment impacted description | |
| Interpretation impacted | Not Applicable |
| Interpretation impacted description |