Meta-Analyst: software for meta-analysis of binary, continuous and diagnostic data

Table 1 Comparison of Meta-Analysis Software

	Stata/WinBUGS	R/OpenBUGS	MIX	CMA	RevMan	Meta-Analyst
Operating system	Windows, Mac, Linux	Windows, Mac, Linux	Windows	Windows	Windows, Mac, Linux	Windows
Version	10	2.6	1.7	2	5.0.18	Beta 1.0
Price	$785*	FREE	FREE	$1,295	FREE	FREE
Import data	✓	✓	✓	✓		✓
Meta-analysis interface/routines	Macros	Macros	Dedicated	Dedicated	Dedicated	Dedicated
Meta-regression	✓	✓	∅	✓	∅	✓
Single group	✓	✓	✓^†	✓	✓^†	✓
Fixed effects	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Random effects	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Multilevel models	✓	✓	∅	∅	∅	✓
Random effects meta-regression	✓	✓	∅	∅	∅	✓
Bayesian models	✓	✓	∅	∅	∅	✓
Cumulative meta-analysis	✓	✓	✓	✓	∅	✓
Subgroup analysis	✓	✓	∅	✓	✓	✓
Small study effects (Publication bias tests)**	✓	✓	✓	✓	∅	∅
Binary data	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Continuous data	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Diagnostic test data	✓	✓	∅	∅	✓	✓
Multivariate	✓	✓	∅	∅	∅	✓
Documentation of methods	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Forest plot	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Funnel plot	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
SROC	✓	✓	∅	∅	✓	✓
HSROC - bivariate meta-analysis	✓	✓	∅	∅	∅	✓
Point and click plot editing	✓	∅	∅	∅	∅	✓
Programming capabilities	✓	✓	∅	∅	∅	✓
Leave one out sensitivity	✓	✓	∅	✓	∅	✓
Results format	RTF	RTF	MS Excel	RTF, PowerPoint	RevMan	PDF, RTF, image files

* Intercooled Stata for a single processor, educational licence. Other versions are more expensive.
^† One group analysis available for continuous outcomes only.
**Recent empirical research challenges the routine use of the so-called "publication bias diagnostics" [19–21].
RTF: Rich text format (can be opened in MS Word); SROC: summary receiver operating characteristic curve

ISSN: 1471-2288