| Study | Quality grades assigned by reviewers (NS/TJ) | Confounders/variables analysed | Limitationsstrengths | Findings |
| Mustard et al, 199636 | Adequate/sound | Neighbourhood income quintile, prenatal care, maternal age, parity, marital status, ethnicity | L: Inadequately defined RM threatening validity. S: Large study, small (11%) attrition | Moved vs not moved, likelihood of <80% visits with one ambulatory care provider: 0–23 months: OR 1.32 (1.21 to 1.43); 24–60 months: OR 1.33 (1.20 to 1.46) |
| Vuorinen et al, 199037 | Adequate/adequate | SE (parental occupation), age, distance to medical service, family structure, urban vs rural location | L: Limitations of database used not discussed, and measure of mobility not including frequency, recency or reason for moves | Residential change out of municipality of birth had no significant independent association with children’s use of primary health services |
| Fowler et al, 199338 | Adequate/adequate | SE, age, sex, maternal education and marital status, health insurance status | L: Lack of information sampling of group; recall bias. S: Large nationally sampled study | ⩾3 Moves vs less: lack regular site preventative care: OR 2.4 (2.0 to 3.1); lack regular site sick care OR 3.3 (2.3 to 4.3); use ED for sick care: OR 1.6 (1.3 to 2.1) |
| Duchon et al, 199939 | Adequate/adequate | Age, sex, marital status, family size, school education, employment, Medicaid status | L: Control group may have been systematically different from sheltered mother group with high potential for residual bias. 30% attrition. Indirect reference to child health | ED use and no regular source of care: frequent movers vs comparison “never-sheltered” group: OR 4.70 (1.84 to 11.99) |
| Providence Plan Group, 200240 | Suboptimal/suboptimal | None | L: Large potential for bias with lack of analysis. Quality of dataset not discussed | Increased moves associated with increased no of providers seen, decreased routine primary health care visits, but no significant difference in having blood lead screen test |
ED, emergency department; L:, limitations; OR, odds ratio followed by 95% confidence interval in brackets; RM, residential mobility; S:, strengths; SE, socioeconomic factors or measures.