The reporting of studies using routinely collected health data was often insufficient

Lars G Hemkens; Eric I Benchimol; Sinéad M Langan; Matthias Briel; Benjamin Kasenda; Jean-Marie Januel; Emily Herrett; Erik von Elm

doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2016.06.005

The reporting of studies using routinely collected health data was often insufficient

J Clin Epidemiol. 2016 Nov:79:104-111. doi: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2016.06.005. Epub 2016 Jun 23.

Authors

Lars G Hemkens¹, Eric I Benchimol², Sinéad M Langan³, Matthias Briel⁴, Benjamin Kasenda⁵, Jean-Marie Januel⁶, Emily Herrett³, Erik von Elm⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Research, Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital Basel, Spitalstrasse 12, CH-4031 Basel, Switzerland. Electronic address: lars.hemkens@usb.ch.
² Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, School of Epidemiology, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Ottawa, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada; Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, G1 06, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada.
³ Department of Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London, WC1E 7HT, United Kingdom.
⁴ Department of Clinical Research, Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital Basel, Spitalstrasse 12, CH-4031 Basel, Switzerland; Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON L8S 4K1, Canada.
⁵ Department of Clinical Research, Basel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University Hospital Basel, Spitalstrasse 12, CH-4031 Basel, Switzerland.
⁶ University Institute of Higher Education and Research in Health Care (IUFRS), Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Biopole 2, Route de la Corniche 10, CH-1010, Lausanne, Switzerland.
⁷ Cochrane Switzerland, Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Route de la Corniche 10, CH-1010, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Abstract

Objectives: To assess reporting quality of studies using routinely collected health data (RCD) to inform the REporting of studies Conducted using Observational Routinely collected health Data (RECORD) guideline development.

Study design and setting: PubMed search for observational studies using RCD on any epidemiologic or clinical topic. Sample of studies published in 2012. Evaluation of five items based on the STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guideline and eight newly developed items for RCD studies.

Results: Of 124 included studies, 39 (31.5%) clearly described its design in title or abstract. Complete information to frame a focused research question, that is, on the population, intervention/exposure, and outcome, was provided for 51 studies (41.1%). In 44 studies where definitions of codes or classification algorithms would be necessary to operationalize such a research question, only nine (20.5%) reported all items adequately. In 81 studies describing multivariable analyses, 54 (66.7%) reported all variables used for modeling and 34 (42.0%) reported basic details required for replication. Database linkage was reported adequately in 12 of 41 studies (29.3%). Statements about data sharing/availability were rare (5/124; 4%).

Conclusion: Most RCD studies are insufficiently reported. Specific reporting guidelines and more awareness and education on their use are urgently needed.

Keywords: Bibliometrics; Guidelines; Observational studies; Research design; Research reporting; Routinely collected data.

MeSH terms

Data Collection / methods*
Data Collection / standards*
Epidemiologic Research Design*
Guidelines as Topic
Humans
Observational Studies as Topic
Research Report / standards*

Abstract

MeSH terms

Grants and funding