R help - Apr 2012 - meta-analysis, outcome = OR associated with a continuous independent variable

Hello everyone,
I want to do a meta-analysis of case-control studies on which an OR was
computed based on a continuous exposure. I have found several several
packages (metafor, rmeta, meta) but unless I misunderstood their main
functions,  it seems to me that they focus on two-group comparisons (binary
independent variable), and do not have the option of using a continuous
independent variable.


If this is right, do you have any suggestions for a meta-analysis with
continuous independent variable? I using lme or lme4 with weights my only
option?

Thanks in advance,
MP

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On Thu, Apr 5, 2012 at 8:24 AM, Marie-Pierre Sylvestre
<mp.sylvestre at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello everyone,
> I want to do a meta-analysis of case-control studies on which an OR was
> computed based on a continuous exposure. I have found several several
> packages (metafor, rmeta, meta) but unless I misunderstood their main
> functions, ?it seems to me that they focus on two-group comparisons (binary
> independent variable), and do not have the option of using a continuous
> independent variable.

There's no problem in using continuous exposures in meta.summaries()
in the rmeta package.  For each study, compute your log odds ratio and
its standard error, and feed them in.

You just need to make sure that the odds ratio is in the same units in
each study, of course.

   -thomas

-- 
Thomas Lumley
Professor of Biostatistics
University of Auckland