Multivariate Meta-analysis

Abstract

Multivariate analysis, simultaneously, assesses the separate effects of the predictors on one outcome adjusted for the other. E.g., it can answer clinically important questions like: does drug-compliance not only predict drug efficacy, but also, independently of the first effect, predict quality of life (qol). In this chapter (1) the effect of counseling and non-compliance on drug efficacy and quality of life was assessed in a meta-analysis of 25 studies, (2) the effect of type of research group on hospital admissions due to adverse drug effects, study magnitudes, and patients age, in a meta-analysis of 20 studies, and (3) the effect of counseling and non-compliance on drug efficacy and quality of life in a meta-analysis of 20 studies. In all of the examples a beneficial effect of the predictors on the multivariate outcomes was observed.