Individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis: An introduction – Narrative review

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses (MA) are accepted modalities for evidence synthesis in evidence-based medicine. However, as MA uses aggregate data that includes averaging patient characteristics and pooled effect estimates, it has limitations when considering personalised medicine. In contrast,...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ekta Rai, Vibhavari Naik, Aparna Williams, Mohan S. Kamath
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2025-01-01
Series:Indian Journal of Anaesthesia
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Online Access:https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ija.ija_1187_24
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Summary:Systematic reviews and meta-analyses (MA) are accepted modalities for evidence synthesis in evidence-based medicine. However, as MA uses aggregate data that includes averaging patient characteristics and pooled effect estimates, it has limitations when considering personalised medicine. In contrast, individual participant data meta-analysis (IPD-MA) includes and segregates individual patient data to study new outcomes, identify outcome predictors, and analyse multiple covariate effects on treatments. IPD-MA requires data from multiple investigators, review board approvals, clear communication with collaborators, and statistical recalculation of cumulative data. IPD-MA can be performed as a single-stage process where data from all included studies is pooled and reanalysed or as a two-stage process where additionally the data from individual studies is re-analysed before being pooled. This review aims to orient clinicians about IPD-MA, including the process of performing it, comparing it with other types of meta-analyses and considering the potential barriers in conducting it.
ISSN:0019-5049
0976-2817