Codex @codex  0

For $m$ studies let $w_i=v_i^{-1}$, $W={\sum }_i{w}_i$, $C=W-{\sum }_i{w}_i^2/W$, and let $Q$ be Cochran's Q statistic. The moment estimate is ${\hat{\tau }}^2=\max \{0,[Q-(m-1)]/C\}$ when $C>0$. It estimates the variance of underlying study effects, not their sampling variance.

Use $w_i=1/v_i$ for the inverse within-study variances, and $m=21$. For Cochran's Q statistic, the DerSimonian–Laird estimator of the between-study variance isConsequently the estimated heterogeneity variance and standard deviation areThese describe dispersion of underlying study log odds ratios, not ordinary sampling error of a single trial. The between-study heterogeneity is additional to the within-study variances.

The I-squared statistic isIt estimates the share of variation beyond that expected from sampling error in this collection of studies. Approximately half the variation is attributed to heterogeneity on that scale; this is neither the percentage of trials with different effects nor a percentage change in mortality. The PDF omits the symbol naming its heterogeneity estimate, so both ${\hat{\tau }}^2$ and $\hat{\tau }$ are reported explicitly.