Understanding Meta-Epidemiological Studies

The concept of meta-epidemiology has been introduced because of the methodological limitations of the systematic review of clinical trials of intervention. Metaepidemiology has moved from a statistical method to a new methodology to close gaps between evidence and practice, controlling the potential biases in quantitative systematic review and drawing appropriate evidence to establish evidence-based guidelines. Network metaepidemiology has been suggested to overcome some limitations of meta-epidemiology. This review aims to clarify the concept and major methods to conduct a metaepidemiological study.