Development and use of a flexible data harmonization platform to facilitate the harmonization of individual patient data for meta-analyses

• Published in: BMC research notes Vol. 12; no. 1; p. 164
• Main Authors: Kalter, Joeri, Sweegers, Maike G, Verdonck-de Leeuw, Irma M, Brug, Johannes, Buffart, Laurien M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 22.03.2019; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Back pain; Cancer; Cancer research; Centralized and secured database server; Clinical trials; Data base management systems; Data collection; Data dictionaries; Data processing; Data security; Database administration; Database Management Systems; Databases, Factual; Easy in use infrastructure; Evidence-based medicine; Flexible data harmonization platform; Humans; Information Storage and Retrieval; Infrastructure (Economics); Interfaces; Legal medicine; Medical Informatics Applications; Meta-analysis; Meta-Analysis as Topic; Open source software; Patients; Quality of life; Rehabilitation; Relational data bases; Research Note; Servers; Servers (Computers); Statistics; Structured Query Language-SQL; Studies; Variables; Easy in use infrastructure; Flexible data harmonization platform; Centralized and secured database server
• ISSN: 1756-0500; 1756-0500
• DOI: 10.1186/s13104-019-4210-7

Harmonizing individual patient data (IPD) for meta-analysis has clinical and statistical advantages. Harmonizing IPD from multiple studies may benefit from a flexible data harmonization platform (DHP) that allows harmonization of IPD already during data collection. This paper describes the development and use of a flexible DHP that was initially developed for the Predicting OptimaL cAncer RehabIlitation and Supportive care (POLARIS) study. The DHP that we developed (I) allows IPD harmonization with a flexible approach, (II) has the ability to store data in a centralized and secured database server with large capacity, (III) is transparent and easy in use, and (IV) has the ability to export harmonized IPD and corresponding data dictionary to a statistical program. The DHP uses Microsoft Access as front-end application and requires a relational database management system such as Microsoft Structured Query Language (SQL) Server or MySQL as back-end application. The DHP consists of five user friendly interfaces which support the user to import original study data, to harmonize the data with a master data dictionary, and to export the harmonized data into a statistical software program of choice for further analyses. The DHP is now also adopted in two other studies.