Abstract
Objective
To evaluate the reporting quality of randomized controlled trial (RCT) abstracts regarding patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and to analyze the factors influencing the quality.
Methods
The PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases were searched to collect RCTs on patients with COVID-19. The retrieval time was from inception to December 1, 2020. The CONSORT statement for abstracts was used to evaluate the reporting quality of RCT abstracts.
Results
A total of 53 RCT abstracts were included. The CONSORT statement for abstracts showed that the average reporting rate of all items was 50.2%. The items with a lower reporting quality were mainly the trial design and the details of randomization and blinding (<10%). The mean overall adherence score across all studies was 8.68 ± 2.69 (range 4–13.5). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that the higher reporting scores were associated with higher journal impact factor (P < 0.01), international collaboration (P = 0.04), and structured abstract format (P < 0.01).
Conclusions
Although many RCTs on patients with COVID-19 have been published in different journals, the overall quality of reporting in the included RCT abstracts was suboptimal, thus diminishing their potential usefulness, and this may mislead clinical decision-making. In order to improve the reporting quality, it is necessary to promote and actively apply the CONSORT statement for abstracts.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, Reporting quality, patients, Randomized controlled trial abstracts, The CONSORT statement for abstracts, 【초록키워드】 Randomized controlled trial, coronavirus disease, Trial, randomization, database, RCT, International, Patient, Blinding, CONSORT statement, Factor, Web of Science, Abstract, Linear regression analysis, average, abstracts, multivariate, Cochrane Library, objective, IMPROVE, Result, was used, evaluate, searched, promote, patients with COVID-19, 【제목키워드】 Randomized controlled trial, CONSORT statement, Abstract, patients with COVID-19,