Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33911772›Full record

ArticleAnnals of dermatology2020

Pervasive Misclassification and Misconception of Study Designs in Asian Dermatology Journals Listed in Science Citation Index-Expanded.

Sungjun Choi, Hyun-Sun Yoon

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of dermatology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Observational
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Sungjun ChoiDepartment of Dermatology, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8482-520X
Hyun-Sun YoonDepartment of Dermatology, SMG-SNU Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1401-2670

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMisclassification of study designs of journals can hinder the readers from assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the study and evaluating the applicability of the study in the real-world setting. However, it seems that it is common for authors to neglect to classify the study design.

objectiveWe aimed to evaluate the accuracy of the classification of study designs and examine the common errors.

methodsThis descriptive study analyzed four Asian dermatology journals listed in the science citation index expanded from January 2018 to December 2018. We investigated discrepancies between author-reported and actual study designs. Design Algorithm for Medical Literature on Intervention (DAMI) was used to determine the actual study design.

resultsOf the 177 papers analyzed, only 72 articles (40.7%) revealed their study design and among them, 23 articles (32.0%) showed discrepancies between the author-reported and the actual study designs. Case-control studies were the most commonly misclassified study designs by authors.

conclusionThere were considerable differences between the author-reported study design and the actual study design in Asian dermatology journals. Proper classification of study designs by the authors is essential to strengthen evidencebased medicine.

Indexed as

ClassificationEvidence-based medicineObservational studyResearch design

Identifiers

PMID33911772
PMCPMC7992578

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.