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Table 5 Quality checklist

From: Corneal biomechanical properties after SMILE versus FLEX, LASIK, LASEK, or PRK: a systematic review and meta-analysis

No. of question

Question

Answer

Score

Anders H. Vestergaard [45, 46]

Danyang Wang [47]

Iben Bach Pedersen [48]

Kazutaka Kamiya [49]

Di Wu [39]

Alper Agca [38]

Yang Shen [50]

Rui Dou [51]

Shrvin Mir Mohi Sefat [25]

Wenjing Wu [40]

Hua Li [30]

Ihab Mohamed Osman [36]

Bingjie Wang [41]

Lei Xia [52]

Minjie Chen [53]

Yusuf Yidirim [54]

Jun Zhang [55]

Rohit Shetty [56]

Mohamed Nagy Elmohamady [57]

Manrong Yu [61]

EsraaEl-Mayah [59]

1

Is the hypothesis /aim/objective of the study clearly described?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                     

2

Are the main outcomes to be measured clearly described in the Introduction or Methods section?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                     

3

Are the characteristics of the patients included in the study clearly described?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                

X

    

4

Are the interventions of interest clearly described?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                     

5

Are the distributions of principal confounders in each group of subjects to be compared clearly described?

YES

2

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

 
  

PARTIALLY

1

X

             

X

 

X

   

X

  

NO

0

                     

6

Are the main findings of the study clearly described?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                

X

    

7

Does the study provide estimates of the random variability in the data for the main outcomes?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

          

X

          

8

Have all important adverse events that may be a consequence of the intervention been reported?

YES

1

  

X

X

  

X

  

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

X

X

  

X

X

 

X

X

 

X

 

X

        

9

Have the characteristics of patients lost to follow-up been described?

YES

1

X

 

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

  

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

 

X

 

X

 

X

       

X

 

X

X

    

10

Have actual probability values been reported for the main outcomes except where the probability value is less than 0.001?

YES

1

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

X

X

 

X

X

  

NO

0

  

X

           

X

   

X

  

11

Were the subjects asked to participate in the study representative of the entire population from which they were recruited?

YES

1

 

X

X

  

X

           

X

 

X

X

  

NO

0

                     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

X

  

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

  

12

Were those subjects who were prepared to participate representative of the entire population from which they were recruited?

YES

1

                   

X

 
  

NO

0

    

X

X

X

              
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

X

X

X

X

   

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

13

Were the staff, places, and facilities where the patients were treated, representative of the treatment the majority of patients receive?

YES

1

 

X

X

 

X

X

X

  

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

   
  

NO

0

                   

X

 
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

X

  

X

   

X

X

         

X

 

X

14

Was an attempt made to blind study subjects to the intervention they have received?

YES

1

                     
  

NO

0

  

X

 

X

   

X

X

   

X

     

X

X

  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

X

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

  

X

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

  

15

Was an attempt made to blind those measuring the main outcomes of the intervention?

YES

1

                     
  

NO

0

  

X

 

X

              

X

X

  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

X

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

16

If any of the results of the study were based on “data dredging”, was this made clear?

YES

1

X

 

X

 

X

X

       

X

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

 

X

    

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

X

     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

   

X

                 

17

In trials and cohort studies, do the analyses adjust for different lengths of follow-up of patients, or in case-control studies, is the time period between the intervention and outcome the same for cases and controls?

YES

1

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

    

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

 

X

 

X

         

X

X

X

X

    

18

Were the statistical tests used to asses the main outcomes appropriate?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

 

X

X

X

  

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

        

X

 

X

   

X

X

     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

                     

19

Was compliance with the inerventions reliable?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

                     

20

Were the main outcome measures used accurate (valid and reliable)?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

                     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

                     

21

Were the patients in different intervention groups (trials and cohort studies) or were the cases and controls (case-control studies) recruited from the same population?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

 
  

NO

0

                     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

                  

X

 

X

22

Were study subjects in different intervention groups (trials and cohort studies) or were the cases and controls (case-control studies) recruited over the same period of time?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

X

 
  

NO

0

                     
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

                  

X

 

X

23

Were study subjects randomised to intervention groups?

YES

1

X

    

X

           

X

   
  

NO

0

  

X

     

X

X

   

X

 

X

   

X

X

  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

 

X

 

X

X

 

X

X

  

X

X

X

 

X

 

X

 

X

  

24

Was the randomised intervention assignment concealed from both patients and health care staff until recruitment was complete and irrevocable?

YES

1

     

X

               
  

NO

0

 

X

X

   

X

X

X

X

   

X

 

X

 

X

 

X

X

  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

X

  

X

X

     

X

X

X

 

X

 

X

 

X

  

25

Was there adequate adjustment for confounding in the analyses from which the main findings were drawn?

YES

1

X

X

X

X

 

X

 

X

 

X

  

X

    

X

 

X

 
  

NO

0

    

X

 

X

 

X

 

X

  

X

X

X

X

 

X

 

X

  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

           

X

         

26

Were losses of patients to follow-up taken into account?

YES

1

X

 

X

   

X

X

 

X

 

X

X

  

X

 

X

X

X

X

  

NO

0

     

X

  

X

       

X

    
  

UNABLE TO DETERMINE

0

 

X

 

X

X

     

X

  

X

X

      

27

Did the study have sufficient power to detect a clinically important effect where the probability value for a difference being due to chance is less than 5%

YES

1

X

 

X

X

 

X

     

X

         
  

NO

0

 

X

  

X

 

X

X

X

X

  

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

 

Total scores

 

28

20

17

22

17

18

22

19

18

15

20

15

20

19

17

15

16

18

23

16

21

17

 

excellent (26–28); good (20–25); fair (15–19); poor (≤14)

  

Good

Fair

Good

Fair

Fair

Good

Fair

Fair

Fair

Good

Fair

Good

Fair

Fair

Fair

Fair

Fair

Good

Fair

Good

Fair

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BMC Ophthalmology

ISSN: 1471-2415

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