About the Authors

Benjamin Kasenda

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Erik von Elm

erik.vonelm@chuv.ch

Affiliation Cochrane Switzerland, Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland

John J. You

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Anette Blümle

Affiliation Cochrane Germany, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany

Yuki Tomonaga

Affiliation Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention Institute (EBPI), University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Ramon Saccilotto

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Alain Amstutz

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Theresa Bengough

Affiliations Cochrane Switzerland, Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland, Austrian Federal Institute for Health Care, Department of Health and Society, Vienna, Austria

Joerg J. Meerpohl

Affiliation Cochrane Germany, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany

Mihaela Stegert

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Kelechi K. Olu

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Kari A. O. Tikkinen

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Departments of Urology and Public Health, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

Ignacio Neumann

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Internal Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Alonso Carrasco-Labra

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Evidence-Based Dentistry Unit, Faculty of Dentistry, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Markus Faulhaber

Affiliation Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Sohail M. Mulla

Affiliation Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Dominik Mertz

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Elie A. Akl

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Internal Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon, Department of Medicine, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States of America

Dirk Bassler

Affiliation Department of Neonatology, University Hospital of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Jason W. Busse

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Pain Research and Care, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Anesthesia, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Ignacio Ferreira-González

Affiliation Epidemiology Unit, Department of Cardiology, Vall d’Hebron Hospital and Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Publica (CIBERESP), Barcelona, Spain

Francois Lamontagne

Affiliation Centre de Recherche Clinique Étienne-Le Bel and Department of Medicine, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada

Alain Nordmann

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Viktoria Gloy

Affiliations Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland, Institute of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

Heike Raatz

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Lorenzo Moja

Affiliation IRCCS Orthopedic Institute Galeazzi, Milan, Italy

Shanil Ebrahim

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Pain Research and Care, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Anesthesia, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Stanford Prevention Research Center, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America

Stefan Schandelmaier

Affiliations Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland, Academy of Swiss Insurance Medicine, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Xin Sun

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Chinese Evidence-Based Medicine Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China

Per O. Vandvik

Affiliation Department of Medicine, Innlandet Hospital Trust–Division Gjøvik, Oppland, Norway

Bradley C. Johnston

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Department of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Martin A. Walter

Affiliation Institute of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

Bernard Burnand

Affiliation Cochrane Switzerland, Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland

Matthias Schwenkglenks

Affiliation Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention Institute (EBPI), University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Lars G. Hemkens

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Heiner C. Bucher

Affiliation Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Gordon H. Guyatt

Affiliations Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Matthias Briel

Affiliations Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland, Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Competing Interests

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Author Contributions

Conceived and designed the experiments: BK EvE MB. Performed the experiments: SS JY AB YT RS AA TB JJM MSt KKO KAOT IN AC MF SMM DM EAA DB JWB IF FL AN VG HR LM SE XS POV BCJ MAW MSch LGH BB HCB GHG. Analyzed the data: BK EvE MB. Wrote the first draft of the manuscript: BK EvE MB. Contributed to the writing of the manuscript: SS JY AB YT RS AA TB JJM MSt KKO KAOT IN AC MF SMM DM EAA DB JWB IF FL AN VG HR LM SE XS POV BCJ MAW MSch LGH BB HCB GHG. Agree with the manuscript’s results and conclusions: BK EvE SS JY AB YT RS AA TB JJM MSt KKO KAOT IN AC MF SMM DM EAA DB JWB IF FL AN VG HR LM SE XS POV BCJ MAW MSch LGH BB HCB GHG MB. All authors have read, and confirm that they meet, ICMJE criteria for authorship.