2.6. Statistical Analysis
CVD
To investigate the effects of the n−3 fatty acids on the hierarchical composite outcomes, the present analyses used the win ratio method with the intention-to-treat principle. In this method, every patient on the n−3 fatty acids was compared with every patient on the placebo (i.e., comparing every possible patient-to-patient pair), considering a shared follow-up time that was determined as the minimum of their individual follow-up durations. To determine “winners” and “losers” [We also conducted subgroup analyses with baseline dietary fish intake (<1.5 servings/week or ≥1.5 servings/week, which was the median intake frequency) based on our previous analyses suggesting that baseline quantity of dietary fish intake can modify the effect of the n−3 fatty acid intervention on CVD incidence [