Research Workbench

Can I Pool These Studies?

Compare the methodological decisions that need resolving before quantitative synthesis.

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Use this to structure a methodological discussion. It does not assess papers, calculate heterogeneity, or decide whether pooling is appropriate.

Do the studies address a sufficiently similar clinical question?Are the designs and effect interpretations compatible?Are the outcome definitions and time points compatible?Can the effect measures be meaningfully combined?Are participant samples independent across estimates?Are usable estimates and uncertainty available?Have risk of bias and important differences been assessed?

Questions to resolve before pooling

Needs clarification: Write the intended question and identify differences in population, interventions or exposures, and comparators.
Needs clarification: Plan separate synthesis for designs or estimands that answer different questions; do not mix randomized and observational evidence automatically.
Needs clarification: Map definitions, instruments, and follow-up windows. A shared outcome name does not establish equivalence.
Needs clarification: Check direction, scales, units, adjusted versus unadjusted effects, and whether any conversion is justified.
Needs clarification: Identify overlapping cohorts, repeated outcomes, and multi-arm comparisons before choosing a method.
Needs clarification: Check effect estimates and standard errors or appropriate raw summaries. Plan author queries for missing information.
Needs clarification: Assess risk of bias and possible effect modifiers; a low I² does not establish clinical compatibility.