Does Piperacillin-Tazobactam Increase Mortality Risk Compared With Cefepime? Collider Bias and the Importance of Assumptions in Instrumental Variable Analyses
The recent IV analysis does not support a mortality benefit for cefepime; results appear dependent on incorrect analytical choices introducing bias. Clinicians should be aware of IV analysis complexities and assumptions when making causal inferences from observational data, especially when results contradict high-quality trials and antibiotic choice is the exposure.
Authors
- George Davey Smith (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1407-8314)
- Fergus Hamilton (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9760-4059)
- Todd C. Lee (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2267-4239)
- Fernando Pires Hartwig (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3729-0710)
- Guillaume Butler‐Laporte (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5388-0396)
Institutions
- North Bristol NHS Trust (GB)
- Universidade Federal de Pelotas (BR)
- Jewish General Hospital (CA)
- University of Bristol (GB)
- MRC Epidemiology Unit (GB)
- McGill University (CA)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Clinical Infectious Diseases
- Published
- 2025-06-12
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/ciaf317
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Health Systems, Economic Evaluations, Quality of Life
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.13
Funders
- National Institute for Health and Care Research