Neyeloff Jeruza L, Fuchs Sandra C, Moreira Leila B
Post Graduate Program of Cardiology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.
BMC Res Notes. 2012 Jan 20;5:52. doi: 10.1186/1756-0500-5-52.
Meta-analyses are necessary to synthesize data obtained from primary research, and in many situations reviews of observational studies are the only available alternative. General purpose statistical packages can meta-analyze data, but usually require external macros or coding. Commercial specialist software is available, but may be expensive and focused in a particular type of primary data. Most available softwares have limitations in dealing with descriptive data, and the graphical display of summary statistics such as incidence and prevalence is unsatisfactory. Analyses can be conducted using Microsoft Excel, but there was no previous guide available.
We constructed a step-by-step guide to perform a meta-analysis in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, using either fixed-effect or random-effects models. We have also developed a second spreadsheet capable of producing customized forest plots.
It is possible to conduct a meta-analysis using only Microsoft Excel. More important, to our knowledge this is the first description of a method for producing a statistically adequate but graphically appealing forest plot summarizing descriptive data, using widely available software.
荟萃分析对于综合从原始研究中获得的数据很有必要，并且在许多情况下，对观察性研究的综述是唯一可行的选择。通用统计软件包可以对数据进行荟萃分析，但通常需要外部宏或编码。有商业专用软件可用，但可能很昂贵，且专注于特定类型的原始数据。大多数现有软件在处理描述性数据方面存在局限性，并且发病率和患病率等汇总统计数据的图形显示并不理想。可以使用Microsoft Excel进行分析，但以前没有可用的指南。
我们构建了一个逐步指南，用于在Microsoft Excel电子表格中使用固定效应或随机效应模型进行荟萃分析。我们还开发了第二个电子表格，能够生成定制的森林图。
仅使用Microsoft Excel就可以进行荟萃分析。更重要的是，据我们所知，这是首次描述一种使用广泛可用的软件生成统计上充分但图形上吸引人的森林图来汇总描述性数据的方法。
