Objectives: To provide review authors with the knowledge and skills that they need to extract data from reports of cross-over trials and include such data in a meta-analysis.

Summary: The workshop will discuss randomized controlled trials with a two-period, two-treatment cross-over design such that each participant in the trial receives both treatments. It will focus primarily on continuous outcomes and will cover:

- what is a cross-over trial;

- why include cross-over trials in a meta-analysis;

- problems with cross-over trials;

- combining parallel and cross-over trials in a meta-analysis;

- carry over effects;

- practical issues of data extraction for cross-over trials.

The issues will be illustrated with practical work extracting data from papers. Participants should bring calculators, highlighter pens, and a laptop if they have one (laptops should be fully charged as there will be no power supply available at the workshop).

Level of knowledge required to attend: advanced.