Research Article: Systematic review and meta-analysis of disease clustering in multimorbidity: a study protocol
Abstract:
Introduction Multimorbidity is defined as the presence of two or more chronic diseases. Co-occurring diseases can have synergistic negative effects, and are associated with significant impacts on individual health outcomes and healthcare systems. However, the specific effects of diseases in combination will vary between different diseases. Identifying which diseases are most likely to co-occur in multimorbidity is an important step towards population health assessment and development of policies to prevent and manage multimorbidity more effectively and efficiently. The goal of this project is to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies of disease clustering in multimorbidity, in order to identify multimorbid disease clusters and test their stability. Methods and analysis We will review data from studies of multimorbidity that have used data clustering methodologies to reveal patterns of disease co-occurrence. We propose a network-based meta-analytic approach to perform meta-clustering on a select list of chronic diseases that are identified as priorities for multimorbidity research. We will assess the stability of obtained disease clusters across the research literature to date, in order to evaluate the strength of evidence for specific disease patterns in multimorbidity. Ethics and dissemination This study does not require ethics approval as the work is based on published research studies. The study findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and disseminated through conference presentations and meetings with knowledge users in health systems and public health spheres. PROSPERO registration number CRD42023411249.
Introduction:
Multimorbidity is the co-occurrence of chronic diseases, defined as the presence of two or more chronic conditions in a single individual. 1 2 Multimorbidity is one of the most complex and pressing challenges for modern healthcare systems. It is estimated that more than 50% of the global population above the age of 60 have multimorbidity. 3 These numbers are projected to rise, 4 due to the global increase in non-communicable disease prevalence and ageing population demographics in many countries. 5 6…
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