Rosiglitazone: can meta-analysis accurately estimate excess cardiovascular risk given the available data? Re-analysis of randomized trials using various methodologic approaches

BackgroundA recent and provocative meta-analysis, based on few outcome events, suggested that rosiglitazone increased cardiovascular mortality and myocardial infarction. However, results of meta-analyses of trials with sparse events, often performed when examining uncommon adverse effects due to common therapies, can vary substantially depending on methodologic decisions. The objective of this study was to assess the robustness of the …