It is unknown how missing data for severity indicators, or for outcome (n = 128; 4 %), may have influenced results.
How missing or abnormal gene products prevent adipocyte development or cause disappearance of adipose tissue in distinct regions of the human body, however, remains mostly unknown.
Otherwise, rules about how missing charts and data will be handled should be devised prior to the commencement of the data collection process.
None of the selected studies described the degree of missing data or of how missing data would be handled in the analysis.
We imputed ten additional datasets using the Amelia II program for missing data [ 37] to test how missing data would affect the final models.
We imputed 10 additional datasets using the Amelia II program for missing data [ 38] to test how missing data would effect the final models.
Two studies reported how missing data were addressed statistically, 23 27 with three reporting missing data for variables of interest.
While there are a number of approaches that could be taken to deal with missing data, 16/26 IPD-MA did not report how missing data were handled.
We also examined the linkage between analytic strategy (ie, ITT or not) and how missing data on outcomes were handled (if at all), and whether data analytic and missing data strategies have changed over time.
152 The protocol should also state how missing data will be handled in the analysis and detail any planned methods to impute (estimate) missing outcome data, including which variables will be used in the imputation process (if applicable).
Lack of clarity in journal articles about how missing data were handled makes it difficult for readers to critically assess the study findings.
