Table 3 Confidence in the relative risk of each comparison and outcome assessed by the GRADE system for short-term mortality, reintubation, and post-extubation respiratory failure
| Risk of bias across studies | Imprecision | Heterogeneity | Indirectness | Publication bias | Incoherence | Confidence in relative risk of the event | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short-term mortality | |||||||
| NIV vs. COT | Undetected |
Very seriousa (95% CI 0.53–1.06) |
No concern (95% PI 0.51–1.11) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.33) | ⨁⨁◯◯ Low |
| HFNC vs. COT | Undetected |
Seriousb (95% CI 0.67–1.27) |
No concern (95% PI 0.64–1.33) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.33) | ⨁⨁⨁◯ Moderate |
| HFNC vs. NIV | Undetected |
Seriousb (95% CI 0.61–1.08) |
No concern (95% PI 0.58–1.13) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.33) | ⨁⨁⨁◯ Moderate |
| Reintubation | |||||||
| NIV vs. COT | Undetected |
Seriousb (95% CI 0.30–1.00) |
Some concernc (95% PI 0.16–1.84) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.58) | ⨁⨁⨁◯ Moderate |
| HFNC vs. COT | Undetected |
Not serious (95% CI 0.32–0.89) |
Major concernd (95% PI 0.17–1.70) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.58) | ⨁⨁⨁⨁ High |
| HFNC vs. NIV | Undetected |
Very seriousa (95% CI 0.53–1.97) |
No concern (95% PI 0.29–3.55) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.58) | ⨁⨁◯◯ Low |
| Post-extubation respiratory failure | |||||||
| NIV vs. COT | Undetected |
Very seriousa (95% CI 0.54–1.38) |
No concern (95% PI 0.29–2.58) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.56) | ⨁⨁◯◯ Low |
| HFNC vs. COT | Undetected |
Seriousb (95% CI 0.43–1.02) |
Some concernc (95% PI 0.23–1.92) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.56) | ⨁⨁⨁◯ Moderate |
| HFNC vs. NIV | Undetected |
Very seriousa (95% CI 0.79–2.14) |
No concern (95% PI 0.42–3.98) | Low | Not suggested |
No concern (p = 0.56) | ⨁⨁◯◯ Low |