Meta-Analysis Paper

Meta-analysis is a research design that is basically quantitative, formal and epidemiological (Haidich, 2010). It is applied to the systematic assessment of done and published research reports to extract relevant information needed to make certain conclusions about a topic. Meta-analysis involves conducting a pooled study of past research works to find aggregate relevant information and data to support a given point (Fleming, 2015). Therefore, the essence of meta-analysis is that it enables a researcher to come up with conclusions which could not be achieved by just using an individual resource or article.

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For the topic of incidence of the collarbone breakage disease among children, relevant information would be gleaned from the small studies by first screening needed data through the use of keywords. In this case, the keywords would be 'epidemiology of collarbone breakage disease'. Another set of keywords in this meta-analysis would be 'incidence of broken collarbones among children'. These key phrases would be the main points of focus in the meta-analysis process using the many small studies. It is important to note that the topic would be broken into sub-titles with individual small studies being used to contribute to each section of the research.

For this topic, the important information to be included in the meta-analysis would be the definition of fractured collarbone condition, investigation of its prevalence and treatments offered. Moreover, finding out information about the best treatment method would be important in this meta-analysis. It is worth noting that there would be much information available in one section relative to others. For instance, it is likely that many small studies dealing with the topic of fractured collarbone have a definition of the condition as the first part of their reports. Therefore, information on this part is expected to be more than other sections.

A broken collarbone is a condition in which the human clavicle develops a bone fracture (Paladini et al., 2012). This condition is highly prevalent among children who are known for having soft bones. Importantly, the clavicle also called the collarbone is the bone which normally links the breast or chest bone to the shoulder of a human being. This specific bone is the one that fractures or breaks. The causes of this condition include falling hard on one's shoulder or even with an outstretched arm. This development may take place during games or any body movement. The current meta-analysis paper analyzes the incidence of this condition.

On the issue of the prevalence of the condition, studies with relevant information on it show that there is a high incidence of it among children. Specifically, about 50% of all clavicle fracture cases do occur among children aged below seven years (Paladini et al., 2012). Moreover, this condition is the most common pediatric fracture. It is vital to acknowledge the fact that clavicle fractures involve 5% of the entire fractures which are seen in the hospital intensive care units. Clavicles are highly risky and easily get broken in human beings.

On the meta-analysis of treatments offered, there are three types found in the small studies considered. The first type of treatment is conservative or natural healing. This type of treatment is the norm for most middle-third clavicle fractures. In fact, it is normally recommended for fractures that do involve displacement of bones at joints. In other cases, wearing a sling with a bandage on the hurt part is normally practiced as a form of treatment for the condition (Paladini et al., 2012). In this case, there is no subsequent therapy that is suggested for the patient. However, there are cases where a person may be encouraged to engage in stretching exercises regularly. The final form of treatment is surgery. There are various surgical treatments which may be offered to a patient when in this condition depending on the kind of fracture. For instance, surgical treatment of the medial end clavicle fractures is normally recommended if the mediastinal structures are put at the risk as a result of the fracture displacement and soft-tissue compromise. Evidently, surgical treatment is the best approach to treating fractured collarbone condition because it entails a determinate and clear correction of the displacement which may have occurred during the breakage. The first two forms of treatment, natural healing and wearing a sling, are highly conservative hence not recommendable.

Believably, the meta-analysis performed on this topic is relevant, valid and suitable to investigate the incidence of broken collarbone condition among children. The meta-analysis performed is relevant because it involved a rigorous screening of the individual studies used to ascertain their validity, reliability, and scholarliness. Moreover, the meta-analysis was based on the use of keywords derived from the main topic of the research to search for the individual past studies in the literature. Importantly, there is a reason to believe this meta-analysis was appropriate and relevant because it observed the recommended steps needed to extract useful information from the literature on the topic of interest. The research question was elaborated and suitable studies selected based on the stated focus of inquiry. Relevant data was then extracted focusing on the important informational sections of the topic.

Conclusion

Potential biases in the meta-analysis include the preference for studies that recommend surgical treatment for the broken collarbone condition. The surgical treatment method was preferred even in cases where the individual studies did not expressly mention it as the best way to treat the condition. It is also vital to mention other potential biases inherent in the small studies used to come up with the conclusions made in the paper.

References

Fleming, S. T. (Ed.). (2015). Managerial Epidemiology: Cases & Concepts. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.

Haidich, A. B. (2010). Meta-analysis in medical research. Hippokratia, 14(Suppl 1), 29. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3049418/

Paladini, P., Pellegrini, A., Merolla, G., Campi, F., & Porcellini, G. (2012). Treatment of clavicle fractures. Translational medicine@ UniSa, 2, 47. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3728778/