Abstract
Purpose :
The objective of this study is to evaluate the rate at which ophthalmology journals require reporting guidelines, as well as the current policies’ efficacy in promoting adherence by determining the rate at which randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in analyzed journals adhere to Consolidated Standards of Reporting of Trials (CONSORT) reporting and trial registration guidelines.
Methods :
For 25 ophthalmology journals’ “Instructions for Authors”, a cross-sectional survey was performed to assess each journal’s policies addressing adherence to reporting guidelines and trial registration. Furthermore, guidelines from 24 ophthalmology journals with high impact factors (>2.2) were analyzed on requirements regarding CONSORT reporting & trial registration for randomized controlled trials (RCTs). All RCTs from 2019-2021 in those journals were examined by two authors to determine if they included CONSORT diagrams and trial registration.
Results :
Across the 25 ophthalmology journals, 17 (68%) mentioned less than five guidelines in their instructions to authors, with no correlation between impact factor and the number of guidelines mentioned (R2 = 0.0098). 15 (60%) did not mention policies addressing clinical trial registration. 541/1300 articles retrieved from PubMed were RCTs. 54% and 63% of journals recommend CONSORT and trial registration, respectively. RCTs in journals referencing CONSORT were significantly more likely to contain CONSORT diagrams compared to journals that did not (p=0.01). No significant difference was found in trial registration reporting in journals referencing registration and those that did not (p = 0.08).
Conclusions :
This investigation found that most ophthalmology journals’ instructions for authors rarely addressed reporting guidelines or trial registration. Moreover, the presence of journal policies for guideline adherence seemed to drive RCT quality improvement. Greater adoption of polices across journals concerning CONSORT and other reporting guidelines may reduce bias and improve the quality of evidence published in ophthalmology journals.
This abstract was presented at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans, LA, April 23-27, 2023.