Table 3.
The GRADE evidence quality for each outcome
| Number of studies | Number of patients | Quality assessment | Quality | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROB | Inconsistency | Indirectness | Imprecision | Publication bias | ||||
| Incidence of postherpetic neuralgia at 3 mo after acute herpes zoster | 26 | 3,072 | Not serious | Not serious | Serious | Not serious | Not serious | ⨁⨁⨁◯Moderate |
| Incidence of postherpetic neuralgia at 1 mo after acute herpes zoster | 19 | 2,492 | Not serious | Not serious | Serious | Not serious | Not serious | ⨁⨁⨁◯Moderate |
| Incidence of postherpetic neuralgia at 6 mo after acute herpes zoster | 17 | 2,502 | Not serious | Not serious | Serious | Not serious | Not serious | ⨁⨁⨁◯Moderate |
| Pain score measured at 3 mo after acute herpes zoster | 9 | 1,225 | Not serious | Not serious | Serious | Serious | Not serious | ⨁⨁◯◯Low |
| Pain score measured at 1 mo after acute herpes zoster | 15 | 2,385 | Not serious | Not serious | Serious | Not serious | Not serious | ⨁⨁⨁◯Moderate |
GRADE: Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation, ROB: risk of bias.