Quality assessment of included observational studies using the modified Newcastle–Ottawa scale
| Selection | Representativeness of the exposed cohort | This item will be assigned a ‘⋆’ when all eligible patients with severe sepsis or septic shock are included in the analysis during the study period |
| Selection of the non-exposed cohort | This item will be assigned a ‘⋆’ when all eligible patients without aPC treatment are included in the analysis during the study period | |
| Ascertainment of exposure | This item will be assigned a ‘⋆’ when aPC administration is directly obtained from a medical chart, not from reporting by the patient | |
| Outcome of interest is not present at the start of the study | This item will be assigned a ‘⋆’ when the subject is alive at the time of enrolment | |
| Comparability | Comparability of cohorts on the basis of design or analysis | Baseline characteristics of aPC and control groups are comparable. Usually this can be found in table 1 of the original article. |
| Outcome | Assessment of outcome | This item will be assigned a ‘⋆’when mortality is assessed by the investigator, not by the report of the patient's family or next-of-kin |
| Is follow-up long enough for outcome to occur? | Adequate follow-up is carried out during hospital stay, ICU stay or redefined study time | |
| Adequacy of follow-up of the cohort | This item will be assigned a ‘⋆’ when the follow-up rate is >80% |
aPC, activated protein C.