Combining randomized and non-randomized evidence in clinical research: a review of methods and applications

Researchers may have multiple motivations for combining disparate pieces of evidence in a meta-analysis, such as generalizing experimental results or increasing the power to detect an effect that a single study is not able to detect. However, while in meta-analysis, the main question may be simple, the structure of evidence available to answer it may be complex. As a consequence, combining disparate pieces of evidence becomes a challenge. In...