Pre-Clinical Meta-Analysis: Another Brick in the Wall

Currently, systematic review and meta-analysis are considered level 1 of scientific evidence and it is widely used in epidemiology and evidence-based medicine. The term meta-analysis comes from the Greek and means “analysis of analyses”, referring to its definition “statistical analysis of a large collection of analysis results from individual studies for the purpose of integrating the findings” proposed by the statistician Gene V. Glass in 1976.

Despite the similarities, it is important to note that meta-analysis and systematic review are not synonymous. Meta-analysis is often, but not always, preceded by a systematic review, which aim to gather similar studies that meet the strict approach eligibility criteria in order to answer a specific research question, whereas meta-analysis integrates the results of included studies by statistical techniques.^,

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