Study Compare

Study Compare enables powerful side-by-side analysis of multiple studies, helping you identify similarities, differences, and patterns across your evidence base.

Overview

Comparing studies is fundamental to systematic review work. Study Compare provides sophisticated tools to examine studies together, facilitating data extraction, quality assessment, and synthesis.

Feature	Description
Side-by-Side View	Display 2-8 studies simultaneously
Characteristic Comparison	Aligned data fields across studies
Difference Highlighting	Automatic marking of variations
Synthesis Tools	Aggregation and summary features

Comparison Views

1. Basic Comparison

View key study characteristics together:

Characteristic	Study A	Study B	Study C
Author, Year	Smith 2020	Jones 2021	Lee 2019
Study Design	RCT	RCT	Cohort
Population	Adults ≥65	Adults 18-65	Adults ≥50
Sample Size	n=250	n=180	n=420
Intervention	Drug A	Drug A + B	Drug A
Comparator	Placebo	Placebo	Standard care

2. Outcome Comparison

Compare results across studies:

Effect Estimates: Side-by-side effect sizes
Confidence Intervals: Overlapping interval visualization
Statistical Significance: P-value comparison
Follow-up Duration: Outcome timing alignment

3. Quality Comparison

Risk of bias and quality metrics:

Domain	Study A	Study B	Study C
Randomization	Low	Low	High
Blinding	Low	Some concerns	High
Attrition	Low	Low	Some concerns
Reporting	Low	Low	Low
Overall	Low	Some concerns	High

Key Features

Intelligent Alignment

The system automatically aligns comparable data:

Smart Matching: Study Compare uses AI to identify corresponding data points across studies, even when terminology differs.

Alignment Capabilities:

Outcome measure mapping
Population characteristic matching
Intervention component alignment
Time point synchronization

Difference Detection

Automatically highlight variations:

Highlighted Differences: Visual emphasis on discrepancies
Similarity Scores: Quantified comparability metrics
Categorized Variations: Grouped by importance level
Change Tracking: Historical comparison updates

Group Analysis

Create study groupings for analysis:

Grouping Criteria	Example Use Case
By intervention type	Compare drug classes
By population	Examine subgroups
By study quality	Sensitivity analysis
By region	Geographic variation

Using Study Compare

Starting a Comparison

Navigate to Knowledge Suite → Study Compare
Select studies from your included studies list
Choose comparison template (or create custom)
Configure fields to display

Comparison Workflow

Step 1: Select Studies

Browse your study library
Use filters to narrow selection
Add up to 8 studies per comparison

Step 2: Choose Comparison Type

Characteristics comparison
Outcome comparison
Quality comparison
Custom comparison

Step 3: Review and Annotate

Examine aligned data
Note similarities and differences
Add comments and annotations

Step 4: Export or Synthesize

Generate comparison tables
Create forest plot data
Export for manuscript

Saving Comparisons

Save comparison sets for future reference:

Name and describe comparison purpose
Tag for easy retrieval
Share with team members
Include in review documentation

Integration Features

With Data Extraction

Pull extracted data directly into comparisons
Verify data accuracy across sources
Identify extraction inconsistencies

With Quality Assessment

Compare RoB judgments
Analyze quality patterns
Support sensitivity analyses

With Synthesis

Feed comparisons to meta-analysis
Generate summary tables
Support narrative synthesis

Best Practices

Effective Comparisons

Start with Key Studies: Begin with most relevant studies
Use Consistent Categories: Apply standardized terminology
Document Rationale: Record why studies were compared
Review Regularly: Update comparisons as new data extracted

Quality Assurance

Cross-check with original sources
Verify alignment accuracy
Have second reviewer confirm
Maintain audit trail