title: Meta-analysis: a tool for medical and scientific discoveries.
abstract: Medicine has made increasing use of meta-analysis, largely as a quantitative procedure for combining results of clinical trials. Meta-analysis begins with a comprehensive review of the literature. The next step is a systematic analysis of the quality and content of each study. Finally, results are combined statistically and conclusions are drawn from this new overview of the data. This paper presents a brief historical perspective on the use of meta-analysis in medicine with emphasis on the medical library. The authors conclude that in the future, medical librarians will play a significant role in the application of this useful technique.
authors.affiliation: University of Florida, College of Medicine, Gainesville 32610.
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Schell
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Rathe
mesh_terms: D049673:History, 20th Century; D016245:Librarians; D007993:Libraries, Medical / Q000266:history; D008511:Medicine; D015201:Meta-Analysis as Topic; D012107:Research Design; D012586:Science; D014481:United States