Table 2 Risk of bias of the 16 data sets of 13 cohorts reporting in 15 articles of 12 original studies
|  | Scott, 2017 [35] | Finlay 2015 [10] | Moucheraud, 2015 [31] | Houle, 2015 [26] | Clark, 2013 [11] | Sartorius, 2011 [25] | Saleem, 2014 [34] | Ronsmans, 2010 [9] | Sartorius, 2010 [24] | Anderson, 2007 [28] | Becher H, 2004 [29] | Masmas, 2004 (Rural) [27] | Masmas, 2004 (Urban) [27] | Nakiyingi, 2003 [32] | Ng’weshemi, 2003 [33] | Katz J, 2003 [30] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bias in selection of participants into study | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
Measurement of exposurea | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
Measurement of outcome | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
Was outcome of interest absent at the time to which the exposure refers? | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
Was follow-up long enough for outcome to occur as a consequence of measured exposure?b | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
Participation rate | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
Completeness of follow-up | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | High | Moderate | Low | Moderate | Low | Moderate | Low |
Accuracy of dates of outcomes or censoring | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
Difference in follow-up between exposed and non-exposed | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | High | Low | Low | Low |
Difference in missing data for exposure between those with or without the outcomec | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
Comparability of exposed and non-exposed cohorts with respect to potentially important confounding variablesd | High | Low | Moderate | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | Low | High | High | High | Low | Low | High | Moderate | Low |
Covariates are appropriately included in statistical analysis models | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | low |