Meta-Analysis Systematic and Design errors: Alcohol Use and Disease Outcomes

This study aims to test hypotheses regarding possible systematic errors in epidemiological studies of alcohol as a risk factor for various chronic diseases. Meta-analyses will be used to determine whether different methods and designs in these studies can unduly bias results towards: (I) creating apparent protection from alcohol use against some diseases; (ii) masking potentially statistically significant associations; (iii) contributing to 'mixed' outcomes that defy a clear resolution; and (iv) influencing the size and significance for established alcohol disease associations.