Dear all,

First of all, thanks for this sdm help list!

There is one paper that I want to include in the meta-analysis that in the Z value for the coordinates instead of putting a Z score, there is a Z range of values (example -35 - +2 or +3 - +49). I am very confused with this terminology. I already contacted the authors, but I did not receive any response. Do I just write a p for positive value or can I do some kind of assumption like for example taking the z value that is in the middle from the Z range? Moreover, there are some papers that put Inf as Z value, and I don't know if I should write a p (for positive value) or 8.1, because normally Z values higher than 8 are Inf?

Thank you in advance and Merry Christmas!

Dear Monica,

I cannot properly answer with this little information... If you cannot know what the Z ranges mean, one possibility could be to use "p" or "n" as you stated, or the conservative bound of the range...

Regarding the infinity, a possibility is to use a very high value as you stated. Another, more conservative possibility is to use the maximum z-value reported in the other studies...

Hope this helps,

Joaquim