Alternative synthesis methodologies are frequently used in systematic reviews that lack data suitable for meta-analysis, and these methods are infrequently recorded in systematic reviews. The review results may be questioned due to the methodologies’ lack of transparency. To aid in guiding detailed reporting in intervention evaluations that use alternative synthesis methodologies to the Systematic Review and Meta Analyses Services of impact estimates, the Synthesis Without Meta-analysis (SWiM) guideline was developed. The nine SWiM reporting parts are explained here, along with an explanation and several examples, together with the SWiM guideline for synthesizing quantitative data on intervention effects.
- Systematic evaluations of health-related treatments frequently employ alternative synthesis methodologies to a meta-analysis of effect estimates, which are referred to as “narrative synthesis.”
- There are severe flaws in reviews that employ “narrative synthesis,” such as a lack of disclosure of the methodologies used, unclear relationships between the included data, the synthesis, and the findings, and inadequate reporting of the synthesis’s limitations.
- The Synthesis Without Meta-analysis (SWiM) guideline is a nine-item checklist designed to improve honest reporting for intervention evaluations that employ alternative synthesis methodologies.
- The SWiM items require users to report on how studies are categorized, the standardized metric used for the synthesis, the synthesis technique, how data are presented, a summary of the synthesis findings, and the Scientific medical research services.
- The SWiM guideline was created using a best practice method that included significant consultation and formal consensus.
Synthesis without meta-analysis reporting items
Item 1: grouping studies for synthesis
Item 2: describe the standardized metric and transformation method used
Item 3: describe the synthesis methods
Item 4: criteria used to prioritize results for summary and synthesis
Item 5: investigation of heterogeneity in reported effects
Item 6: certainty of the evidence
Item 7: data presentation methods
Item 8: reporting results
Item 9: limitations of the synthesis