Table 4 Tests for heterogeneity of treatment effect according to the clinicopathological characteristics of the patients undergoing gastrectomy with and without splenectomy

Deaths

87/100

83/114

1.456 (1.076 to 1.970)

Age, years

  ≤ 55

26/32

25/38

1.559 (0.897 to 2.709)

0.116

  > 55

61/68

58/76

1.377 (0.960 to 1.974)

0.082

Sex

 Women

17/18

20/29

1.527 (0.797 to 2.926)

0.201

 Men

70/82

63/85

1.433 (1.018 to 2.018)

0.039^c

Tumor size, cm

  ≤ 4

16/23

15/27

1.606 (0.778 to 3.314)

0.200

 5 to 6

23/26

18/21

1.135 (0.604 to 2.134)

0.694

  > 6

48/51

50/66

1.606 (1.079 to 2.391)

0.019^c

Pathological tumor stage

 T1

5/5

7/8

3.458 (0.790 to 15.144)

0.100

 T2

21/28

30/45

1.478 (0.840 to 2.598)

0.175

 T3

14/16

19/26

0.871 (0.426 to 1.781)

0.706

 T4

7/8

4/6

1.803 (0.521 to 6.238)

0.352

Pathological nodal stage

 N0

7/10

15/24

1.800 (0.707 to 4.586)

0.218

 N1

16/20

19/29

1.373 (0.704 to 2.678)

0.353

 N2

21/23

19/23

1.221 (0.648 to 2.300)

0.537

 N3

11/12

7/9

0.969 (0.345 to 2.722)

0.952

TNM stage

 IA

2/2

5/5

2.783 (0.386 to 20.066)

0.310

 IB

16/19

14/23

1.433 (0.694 to 2.961)

0.331

 II

15/18

21/30

1.875 (0.955 to 3.681)

0.068

 IIIA

23/29

22/31

1.027 (0.567 to 1.860)

0.930

 IIIB

13/14

13/14

0.800 (0.359 to 1.783)

0.585

 IV

18/18

8/11

1.649 (0.706 to 3.850)

0.248

Gross type (Borrmann)

 I

2/3

2/2

1.405 (0.125 to 15.838)

0.783

 II

18/20

7/12

1.908 (0.790 to 4.609)

0.151

 III

50/59

46/66

1.536 (1.028 to 2.296)

0.036^c

 IV

16/17

23/29

1.623 (0.847 to 3.111)

0.145

Type of gastrectomy

 Total

53/60

50/68

1.317 (0.893 to 1.942)

0.165

 Sub-total

34/40

33/46

1.700 (1.032 to 2.803)

0.037^c