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Revisiting issues, drawbacks and opportunities with observational studies in comparative effectiveness research
Author(s) -
Alemayehu Demissie,
Cappelleri Joseph C.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of evaluation in clinical practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.737
H-Index - 73
eISSN - 1365-2753
pISSN - 1356-1294
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2753.2011.01802.x
Subject(s) - observational study , causal inference , randomized controlled trial , observational methods in psychology , comparative effectiveness research , interpretation (philosophy) , data science , health care , inference , medicine , alternative medicine , management science , psychology , computer science , political science , engineering , artificial intelligence , pathology , programming language , law
Rationale Despite their inherently pervasive limitations, data from observational studies are increasingly relied upon by health care decision makers to fill critical information gaps created by lack of evidence from randomized controlled trials. Aim and objective The aim and objective of this article was to revisit the major issues associated with observational studies from secondary data sources. Method The method of this article was canvass of the literature. Results Sources of bias are highlighted and steps intended to minimize bias are summarized. Conclusion Efforts should be made to improve causal inference of treatment effects from observational studies found in secondary data sources. Extra care and caution should be exercised in the interpretation and reporting of results from these studies.