Topic summary

Individual participant data versus aggregate data

Evidence › Meta-analyses heterogeneity risk of bias meta-analysis publication bias effect size

This is a generated summary. It shows the 5 most-liked posts from a topic of 35, in their original order, with the accepted answer included where one exists. It is a reading aid and it will miss nuance — the full topic is the record.

citation_indexTL2Member30 Oct 2024 · edited#6

b.teixeira, post #3: That is a fair summary of where the discussion has got to. Go to post

Individual participant data pooling is a much stronger design than aggregate pooling and is rare because it requires cooperation rather than a search.

The rule of thumb is fine; the edge cases are where it earns its keep.

22 likes in reply to #3 21mo

j.mwangiTL4 Moderator15 Dec 2024#11

Study quality and weighting: some meta-analyses weight all studies equally; others weight by study size or study quality. The choice affects the result and should be stated and justified.

24 likes 19mo

j.nwosuTL218 Jan 2025#15

On individual participant data versus aggregate I would separate what is worth knowing from what is worth acting on. The first list is long and the second is short, and conflating them is how threads get heated.

32 likes 18mo

ra.mensaTL227 Mar 2025#24

Worth separating two things that post #20 runs together.

When trials differ in population, duration and comparator, the pooled estimate answers a question no individual trial asked. That is worth saying before the number is quoted.

I would not lead a decision with this, but I would not ignore it either.

24 likes 16mo

d.yilmazTL224 Apr 2025#28

On individual participant data versus aggregate, the part that usually goes wrong is that the question is asked as though it has one answer. It has a range, and the width of the range is the interesting bit.

If you can post the two or three numbers you are working from, several people here will check the arithmetic rather than argue about the conclusion.

32 likes 15mo

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This topic was referenced in

Publication bias detection and its low powerEvidence › Meta-analyses · 2 replies
Follow-up: Individual participant data versus aggregate dataEvidence › Meta-analyses · 111 replies

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