consultation of their children for URTIs was calculated by dividing the number
of parents who wanted prescriptions by the total number of study participants.
The heterogeneity of the studies evaluated in this meta-analysis was assessed
using the I2 test. The heterogeneity was classified
as low, moderate, and high, respectively, based on
I2 values of less than 25%, 25%–50%, and more
than 50%. Cause for heterogeneity was also explored using meta-regression. A
random-effects model with 95% confidence intervals was used to evaluate the
overall effect and p-values of < 0.05 was considered
statistically significant. Subgroup analysis was done based upon geography
(continent) using a random intercept logistic regression model. R version 4..2.1
and STATA® software (version 16, STATA Corp.) were used to conduct
the meta-analysis.