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Table 2 Quality assessment by outcome

From: Emollient therapy for preterm newborn infants – evidence from the developing world

 

Quality assessment

Summary of findings

 

Directness

No of events*

 

No of studies

Design

Limitations

Consistency

Generalizability to population of interest

Generalizability to intervention of interest

Intervention

Control

RR / SMD (95% CI)

Neonatal mortality: moderate outcome specific quality of evidence

Three

RCT

No significant heterogeneity, fixed effect model used

One of the three studies suggest benefit

All studies from the developing countries

Two of the studies used sunflower while one used coconut oil as emollient

04

11

RR: 0.73 [0.56, 0.94]

Hospital acquired infection: moderate outcome specific quality of evidence

Three

RCT

No significant heterogeneity, fixed effect model used

All studies suggest benefit

All studies from the developing countries

Studies used sunflower and coconut oil

19

33

RR: 0.50 [0.36, 0.71]

Weight: moderate outcome specific quality of evidence

Four studies (five data sets)

RCT

No significant heterogeneity, fixed effect model used

Three studies suggest benefit

All studies from the developing countries

Studies used coconut, sunflower and soybean oil

149

151

SMD: 98.04 [42.64, 153.45]

Weight gain (g/kg/day): moderate outcome specific quality of evidence

Two studies (three data sets)

RCT

Significant heterogeneity so a random effect model used

One study suggested benefit

All studies from developing countries

Studies used coconut and sunflower oil

95

97

SMD: 1.57 [0.79, 2.36]

Length: moderate outcome specific quality of evidence

Two studies (three data sets)

RCT

Significant heterogeneity so a random effect model used

Two studies suggest benefit

All studies from developing countries

Studies used coconut and sunflower oil

124

128

SMD: 0.33 [-0.15, 0.81]

Head circumference: moderate outcome specific quality of evidence

Two studies (three data sets)

RCT

No significant heterogeneity, fixed effect model used

None of the studies suggest benefit

All studies from developing countries

Studies used coconut and sunflower oil

124

128

SMD: 0.05 [-0.30, 0.41]