Do urology journals enforce trial registration? A cross-sectional study of published trials
Kunath F, Grobe HR, Keck B, Rücker G, Wullich B, Antes G, Meerpohl JJ (2011)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2011
Journal
Book Volume: 1
Article Number: e000430
Journal Issue: 2
DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000430
Abstract
Objectives: (1) To assess endorsement of trial registration in author instructions of urology-related journals and (2) to assess whether randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in the field of urology were effectively registered. Design: Cross-sectional study of author instructions and published trials. Setting: Journals publishing in the field of urology. Participants: First, the authors analysed author instructions of 55 urology-related journals indexed in 'Journal Citation Reports 2009' (12/2010). The authors divided these journals in two groups: those requiring and those not mentioning trial registration as a precondition for publication. Second, the authors chose the five journals with the highest impact factor (IF) from each group. Intervention: MEDLINE search to identify RCTs published in these 10 journals in 2009 (01/2011); search of the clinical trials meta-search interface of WHO (International Clinical Trials Registry Platform) for RCTs that lacked information about registration (01-03/2011). Two authors independently assessed the information. Outcome measures: Proportion of journals providing advice about trial registration and proportion of trials registered. Results: Of 55 journals analysed, 26 (47.3%) provided some editorial advice about trial registration. Journals with higher IFs were more likely to mention trial registration explicitly (p=0.015). Of 106 RCTs published in 2009, 63 were registered (59.4%) with a tendency to an increase after 2005 (83.3%, p=0.035). 71.4% (30/42) of the RCTs that were published in journals mentioning and requiring registration, and 51.6% (33/64) of the RCTs that were published in journals that did not mention trial registration explicitly were registered. This difference was statistically significant (p=0.04). Conclusions: The existence of a statement about trial registration in author instructions resulted in a higher proportion of registered RCTs in those journals. Journals with higher IFs were more likely to mention trial registration.
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Germany (DE)How to cite
APA:
Kunath, F., Grobe, H.R., Keck, B., Rücker, G., Wullich, B., Antes, G., & Meerpohl, J.J. (2011). Do urology journals enforce trial registration? A cross-sectional study of published trials. BMJ Open, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000430
MLA:
Kunath, Frank, et al. "Do urology journals enforce trial registration? A cross-sectional study of published trials." BMJ Open 1.2 (2011).
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