Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39660039›Full record

ReviewGeneral psychiatry2024

SAS macro programme for Bang's Blinding Index to assess and visualise the success of blinding in randomised controlled trials.

Zongshi Qin, Yongpei Yu, Hongqiu Gu, Dongdong Shi, Zhen Wang, Jiani Wu, Toshiaki Furukawa, Yangfeng Wu

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in General psychiatry, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
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

8 authors.

Zongshi QinPeking University Clinical Research Institute, Beijing, China.ORCID 0000-0001-5888-461X
Yongpei YuPeking University Clinical Research Institute, Beijing, China.
Hongqiu GuDepartment of Neurology and China National Clinical Research Center for Neurological Diseases, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Dongdong ShiShanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Zhen WangShanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.ORCID 0000-0003-4319-5314
Jiani WuDepartment of Acupuncture and Neurology, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Toshiaki FurukawaDepartment of Health Promotion and Human Behavior, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine and School of Public Health, Kyoto, Japan.
Yangfeng WuPeking University Clinical Research Institute, Beijing, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This paper aims to present a Statistical Analysis Software (SAS) macro %BBIplus, offering estimation and visualisation methods for the Bang's Blinding Index (BBI) for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with various designs. We developed the SAS macro programme %BBIplus to facilitate the implementation of BBI. This user-friendly programme allows for easy and rapid estimation and visualisation of BBI across different scenarios, including pairwise comparison RCTs with two arms, double-dummy design RCTs with three arms and factorial design RCTs with four arms. The programme requires no pre-existing data set, and users only need to input the number of individuals of correct, uncertain or wrong guesses in each intervention or control group. We illustrate the functionality of %BBIplus using blinding assessment data from three previously published RCTs: BBR (adjunctive berberine reduces antipsychotic-associated weight gain and metabolic syndrome in patients with schizophrenia: a randomised controlled trial), SELECT-TDCS (the sertraline versus electrical current therapy for treating depression clinical study: results from a factorial, randomised controlled trial) and ELECT-TDCS (trial of electrical direct-current therapy versus escitalopram for depression) studies. The programme estimates the BBI for each arm, providing point estimates, 95% CI and associated p values. Additionally, %BBIplus can visualise the estimations through forest plots and make the judgement for the success of blinding easily and rapidly. This tool caters to the needs of clinical trial investigators, offering a comprehensive solution for estimating and visualising the blinding index under various RCT designs.

Indexed as

biostatisticsdouble-blind methodstatistics as topic

Identifiers

PMID39660039
PMCPMC11629010

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.