International journal of rheumatic diseases
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Incidence of gastroduodenal ulcers during treatment with celecoxib or diclofenac: pooled results from three 12-week trials in Chinese patients with osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis.
To test whether treatment with celecoxib reduces the incidence of gastroduodenal ulcers compared to diclofenac in Asian patients with osteoarthritis (OA) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with minimal significant risk factors. ⋯ In Asian patients with minimal significant risk factors, treatment with celecoxib was associated with a modest but significantly reduced incidence of gastric ulcers at the end of 12 weeks.
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Meta-analysis, a complex statistical method which involves synthesis of data from relevant studies to devise an effect size or a conclusion, has increasingly been recognized and impacts on evidence-based medicine, especially in the field of health science. Thanks to the advent and unmet need of evidence-based medicine, since the first recordable publication of a meta-analysis in 1904 addressing the effectiveness of typhoid vaccine, both the number and quality of meta-analyses published relating to healthcare science have been on a steep rise. ⋯ In this first paper of a mini-series, the current trend of meta-analysis publications in the medical literature, examples of important meta-analyses relevant to rheumatology and the pros and cons of meta-analysis, will be discussed. Important terminology related to meta-analysis, the systematic ways to critically appraise, and finally the preferred methodology of conducting meta-analysis will be covered in the subsequent three reviews of this mini-series.