CRSU Apps
INTRODUCTION TO APPS
Welcome to Our Meta-Analysis Apps
Our suite of apps was created to make meta-analysis more accessible, especially for advanced statistical synthesis and diagnostic test accuracy. Built using R Shiny, they’re designed with a strong emphasis on data visualisation and sensitivity analysis.
We’ve got lots planned for the future, and we’ll share updates here as they happen.
If you’d like to get in touch, email us at apps@crsu.org.uk. We always welcome feedback and love hearing from users.
HISTORY & DEVELOPMENT
How It All Started
The idea behind these apps was simple: there was a lack of user-friendly software for conducting meta-analyses, especially for more advanced models. When R Shiny was released, it offered a promising solution — so we got to work.
Development began in 2017, sparked by two outstanding student projects that produced early versions of MetaDTA and MetaInsight. Remarkably, both students still contribute to the apps eight years later!
Inspired by their work, I spent part of that winter holiday teaching myself basic Shiny and built the first version of the DTA primer in spare moments over the following months. That was my first — and last — contribution to the coding effort.
Thankfully, many others with the passion and skill have since made huge contributions, sometimes even voluntarily. It’s been a joy to watch the initiative grow and thrive. The team has achieved far more than I ever imagined, and I’m proud to be part of it.
If you're curious about the development journey and lessons learned along the way, you can read more about it here.