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. 2023 Apr 1;12(1):62.
doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02217-1.

Ten circumstances and solutions for finding the sample mean and standard deviation for meta-analysis

Kuan-Yu Chi #  1 , Man-Yun Li #  1 , Chiehfeng Chen  2   3   4   5 , Enoch Kang  6   7   8   9 ; Cochrane Taiwan
Affiliations

Ten circumstances and solutions for finding the sample mean and standard deviation for meta-analysis

Kuan-Yu Chi et al. Syst Rev. .

Abstract

A common problem in meta-analyses is the unavailability of mean and standard deviation (SD). Unfortunately, only having values of the median, interquartile range (IQR), or range cannot be directly utilized for meta-analysis. Although some estimation and conversion methods have been proposed in the past two decades, there were no published and user-friendly tools developed based on multiple scenarios of missing SD. Therefore, this study aimed to provide a collection of possible circumstances of missing sample means or SD with solutions for teaching and research. A total of 10 common circumstances of missing SD or mean could have available statistics of p value, t value, z score, confidence interval, standard error, median, IQR, and range. Teachers and investigators can use relevant formulas for finding the sample mean and SD according to the available circumstance. Due to the complicated computations, our team provides a free available spreadsheet. With ever-evolving statistical methods, some formulas may be further improved in the future; therefore, it is recommended to involve statisticians in evidence-based practice or systematic reviews.

Keywords: Data conversion; Data estimation; Interquartile; Range; p value; t value; z score.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Ten convertible or estimable circumstances of the missing sample mean or standard deviation
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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