Reader Response: Publication Rate and Consistency of Registered Trials of Motor-based Stroke Rehabilitation
KanaMatsuda, Department of Rehabilitation, Mie University Hospital
ShinsukeHori, Department of Rehabilitation, Mie University Hospital
YukitoUeda, Department of Rehabilitation, Mie University Hospital
KentaUshida, Department of Rehabilitation, Mie University Hospital
RyoMomosaki, Department of Rehabilitation, Mie University Hospital
Submitted March 03, 2021
Aryan et al. reported that 46% of trial registries for motor-based stroke rehabilitation are unpublished.1 There are many unreported cases, especially in rehabilitation research. In our study of the registration and publication status of rehabilitation research in Japan, we found that the number of registrations has increased, but the number of results reported has remained unchanged—86% were not published.2 Aryan et al. recommend trial registries be included when searching for systematic reviews to eliminate bias. Recently, the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) and ClinicalTrials.gov registry information has been included in the Cochrane Library’s CENTRAL database, allowing researchers to easily search for records of ongoing or unpublished clinical trials in systematic reviews.3
As a countermeasure to the problem of unreported data, it is necessary to educate researchers that it is their responsibility to publish, and to foster a culture that does not allow retrospective registration. Recently, an increasing number of journals require prospective registration of clinical trials.4 Also, as a way of reporting negative studies, it might be a good idea to make use of the preprint server, or to turn the registration site into a preprint server, with specifications that make it easy to upload results.
Disclosure
The author reports no relevant disclosures. Contact journal@neurology.org for full disclosures.
References
Aryan R, Jagroop D, Danells CJ, et al. Publication Rate and Consistency of Registered Trials of Motor-based Stroke Rehabilitation [published online ahead of print, 2021 Feb 10]. Neurology. 2021;10.1212/WNL.0000000000011660. doi:10.1212/WNL.0000000000011660
Momosaki R, Okada M, Okuhara T, Kiuchi T, Ogata N, Abo M. Clinical Trials Registry in the Field of Rehabilitation Medicine. Jpn J Rehabi Med. 2018; 55 (7):606-613.
Wade D. Registration of all rehabilitation clinical trials: an ethical and editorial imperative. Clin Rehabil. 2016;30(3):211-212. doi:10.1177/0269215515612209
Aryan et al. reported that 46% of trial registries for motor-based stroke rehabilitation are unpublished.1 There are many unreported cases, especially in rehabilitation research. In our study of the registration and publication status of rehabilitation research in Japan, we found that the number of registrations has increased, but the number of results reported has remained unchanged—86% were not published.2 Aryan et al. recommend trial registries be included when searching for systematic reviews to eliminate bias. Recently, the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) and ClinicalTrials.gov registry information has been included in the Cochrane Library’s CENTRAL database, allowing researchers to easily search for records of ongoing or unpublished clinical trials in systematic reviews.3
As a countermeasure to the problem of unreported data, it is necessary to educate researchers that it is their responsibility to publish, and to foster a culture that does not allow retrospective registration. Recently, an increasing number of journals require prospective registration of clinical trials.4 Also, as a way of reporting negative studies, it might be a good idea to make use of the preprint server, or to turn the registration site into a preprint server, with specifications that make it easy to upload results.
Disclosure
The author reports no relevant disclosures. Contact journal@neurology.org for full disclosures.
References