Table 2.
Results of meta-analyses with and without Non-English studies
| Number of studies | Number of participants | Pooled estimate (95% CI) Summary measure |
% change in effect size/CI width | Difference in estimates | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Review | With non-English | Without non-English | % lost | With non-English | Without non-English | % lost | With non-English | Without non-English | ||
| Acute respiratory infections | ||||||||||
| Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold (CD000980) | 29 | 26 | 10.3 | 11306 | 10899 | 3.6 | 0.95 (0.92, 0.98) RR |
0.96 (0.93, 0.99) | 1.1/0.0 | Negligible |
| Epinephrine for bronchiolitis (CD003123) | 6 | 5 | 16.7 | 995 | 965 | 3.0 | 0.67 (0.50, 0.89) RR |
0.68 (0.51, 0.91) | 1.5/2.6 | Negligible |
| Procalcitonin to initiate or discontinue antibiotics in ARI (CD007498) | 14 | 13 | 7.1 | 4211 | 4168 | 1.0 | 0.91 (0.70, 1.19) OR |
0.90 (0.69, 1.19) | 1.1/2.0 | Negligible |
| Immunostimulants for preventing ARI in children (CD004974) | 35 | 23 | 34.3 | 4060 | 2866 | 29.4 | −1.24 (−1.54, -0.94) MD |
−1.27 (−1.57, −0.96) | 2.4/1.7 | Negligible |
| Bronchodilators for bronchiolitis (CD001266) | 24 | 23 | 4.2 | 1182 | 1149 | 2.8 | −0.45 (−0.96, 0.05) MD |
−0.41 (−0.97, 0.14) | 8.9/9.9 | Small |
| Glucocorticoids for croup (CD001955) | 14 | 13 | 7.1 | 1031 | 998 | 3.2 | −0.59 (−0.83, -0.35) SMD |
−0.65 (−0.89, −0.41) | 10.1/0.0 | Small |
| Azithromycin for acute lower respiratory tract infections (CD001954) | 15 | 14 | 6.7 | 2496 | 2446 | 2.0 | 1.09 (0.64, 1.85) RR |
1.03 (0.60, 1.78) | 5.5/2.5 | Small |
| Systemic corticosteroids for acute sinusitis (CD008115) | 4 | 2 | 50.0 | 869 | 459 | 47.2 | 1.40 (1.08, 1.81) RR |
1.18 (1.05, 1.34) | 15.7/60.3 | Moderate |
| Antibiotics for the common cold and acute purulent rhinitis (CD000247) | 6 | 5 | 16.7 | 1047 | 979 | 6.5 | 0.95 (0.59, 1.51) RR |
1.11 (0.70, 1.76) | 16.8/15.2 | Moderate |
| Acetylcysteine and carbocysteine for acute upper and lower RTIs in paediatric patients without chronic broncho-pulmonary disease (CD003124) | 3 | 0 | 100 | 139 | 0 | 100 | −0.05 (−0.12, 0.02) RD |
NA | NA | Substantial |
| Chinese medicinal herbs for influenza (CD004559) | 2 | 0 | 100 | 197 | 0 | 100 | 1.32 (0.87, 2.00) RR |
NA | NA | Substantial |
| Infectious diseases | ||||||||||
| Vaccines for preventing malaria (CD006198) | 3 | 2 | 33.3 | 307 | 237 | 22.8 | 1.05 (0.82, 1.35) RR |
1.05 (0.82, 1.35) | 0/0 | Negligible |
| Probiotics for treating acute infectious diarrhoea (CD003048) | 35 | 34 | 2.9 | 4555 | 4414 | 3.1 | −24.76 (−33.61, −15.91) MD |
−25.53 (−34.58, −16.49) | 3.1/1.1 | Negligible |
| High first dose quinine regimen for treating severe malaria (CD003341) | 3 | 2 | 33.3 | 144 | 72 | 50.0 | 0.62 (0.19, 2.04) RR |
0.43 (0.09, 2.05) | 30.7/5.9 | Large |
| Oral versus intravenous rehydration for treating dehydration due to gastroenteritis in children (CD004390) | 18 | 15 | 16.7 | 1811 | 1436 | 20.7 | 0.04 (0.01, 0.07) RD |
0.02 (0.00, 0.04) | 50.0/33.3 | Large (with change in statistical significance) |