Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33035290›Full record

SynthesisInvestigative ophthalmology & visual science2020

Lactoferrin Concentration in Human Tears and Ocular Diseases: A Meta-Analysis.

Erika Ponzini, Lorenza Scotti, Rita Grandori, Silvia Tavazzi, Antonella Zambon

Open access · goldAbstract readMeta-Analysis
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Investigative ophthalmology & visual science, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
25citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
4.7field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

25 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 50 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  8. A Review of the Tear Film Biomarkers Used to Diagnose Sjogren's Syndrome.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024
    Review
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  11. Observational
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Erika PonziniUniversity of Milano Bicocca, Materials Science Department, Milan, Italy.
Lorenza ScottiUniversity of Eastern Piedmont, Department of Translational Medicine, Novara, Italy.
Rita GrandoriUniversity of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, Milan, Italy.
Silvia TavazziUniversity of Milano Bicocca, Materials Science Department, Milan, Italy.
Antonella ZambonUniversity of Milano Bicocca, Unit of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Public Health, Department of Statistics and Quantitative Methods, Milan, Italy.
University of Milano-Bicocca · ITUniversità degli Studi del Piemonte Orientale “Amedeo Avogadro” · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the potential of lactoferrin (Lf) as a diagnostic biomarker for ocular diseases using a meta-analytic approach. Methods: All original studies reporting an estimate of the average Lf concentration in healthy subjects and those affected by ocular diseases were searched up to March 2020. The DerSimonian and Laird method was used to calculate the random effects pooled mean difference and the corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) in Lf concentration between healthy subjects and those affected by dry eye (DE), Sjögren syndrome (SS), and diabetic retinopathy, separately. The presence of between-study heterogeneity was evaluated using the Cochran's Q test and the I2 index. Stratified analyses were performed to assess potential sources of heterogeneity and influence and cumulative analyses to evaluate the robustness of the results obtained. Publication bias was also evaluated using funnel plot and the Egger's test. Results: The pooled mean differences in Lf concentrations between healthy subjects and those with DE, Sjögren syndrome, and diabetic retinopathy were respectively 0.62 (95% CI, 0.35-0.89) for DE, 3.78 (95% CI, -6.64 to 14.17), and 0.19 (95% CI, -4.00 to 4.39). Regarding DE, the stratified analysis showed that geographical area (P value Q test < 0.0001) and sample size (P < 0.0005) were sources of heterogeneity. Moreover, no study substantially influenced the results obtained and the pooled mean difference became statistically significant after a sample size of 220. Publication bias may affect the results of DE. Conclusions: The results of the current meta-analysis suggest that Lf level in tears is a good candidate as dry eye syndrome diagnostic biomarker.

Indexed as

BiomarkersDiabetic RetinopathyDry Eye SyndromesEye ProteinsHumansLactoferrinSjogren's SyndromeTearsBiomarkersEye ProteinsLactoferrintear proteins

Identifiers

PMID33035290
PMCPMC7552940
OpenAlexW3091897126

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.