Keywords: meta-analysis, CRAN Task View
At the time of writing the CRAN Task View
MetaAnalysis contains 70+ packages. Despite this large resource there are many overlaps and some important gaps. After a very brief overview of meta-analysis we shall discuss the relationships between the existing packages and the coverage they offer. The main techniques for preparing summary statistics and analysing them in univariate models are well covered with considerable overlaps. Graphical displays are another area of strength but diagnostics have received less coverage. Other topics with adequate coverage include meta-analysis of diagnostic tests, multivariate meta-analysis and network meta-analysis. We shall then outline the current gaps: meta-analysis where some studies have individual participant data available but others only have summary statistics (discussed in the literature but not coded), the method of Hunter and Schmidt (primarily covered in books with closed source software), and trial sequential analysis (discussed in the literature and available in closed source software).
