Mapping physical therapy research: The geographical affiliations and methodological quality of 2,959 randomized controlled trials

Background and PurposeThe methodological quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) is commonly evaluated in order to assess the risk of biased estimates of treatment effects. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify scales used to evaluate the methodological quality of RCTs in health care research and summarize the content, construction, development, and psychometric properties of these scales.MethodsExtensive electronic database searches, along with a manual search, were performed.ResultsOne hundred five relevant studies were identified. They accounted for 21 scales and their modifications. The majority of scales had not been rigorously developed or tested for validity and reliability. The Jadad Scale presented the best validity and reliability evidence; however, its validity for physical therapy trials has not been supported.Discussion and ConclusionMany scales are used to evaluate the methodological quality of RCTs, but most of these scales have not been adequately developed and have not been adequately tested for validity and reliability. A valid and reliable scale for the assessment of the methodological quality of physical therapy trials needs to be developed.

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Inconsistency in the items included in tools used in general health research and physical therapy to evaluate the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials: a descriptive analysis

BMC Medical Research Methodology ◽

10.1186/1471-2288-13-116 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Susan Armijo-Olivo ◽

Jorge Fuentes ◽

Maria Ospina ◽

Humam Saltaji ◽

Lisa Hartling

Keyword(s):

Physical Therapy ◽

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Health Research ◽

General Health ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Descriptive Analysis ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled

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Methodological Quality of Randomized Controlled Trials of Spinal Manipulation and Mobilization in Tension-Type Headache, Migraine, and Cervicogenic Headache

Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy ◽

10.2519/jospt.2006.2126 ◽

2006 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Juan C. Miangolarra-Page

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Spinal Manipulation ◽

Cervicogenic Headache ◽

Tension Type Headache ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Type Headache

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Trends in Worldwide Volume and Methodological Quality of Surgical Randomized Controlled Trials

Annals of Surgery ◽

10.1097/sla.0b013e31829c7795 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 258 (2) ◽

pp. 199-207 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Usama Ahmed Ali ◽

Pieter C. van der Sluis ◽

Yama Issa ◽

Ibrahim Abou Habaga ◽

Hein G. Gooszen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled

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Quality and Risk of Bias in Panax ginseng Randomized Controlled Trials: A Review

The American Journal of Chinese Medicine ◽

10.1142/s0192415x13500171 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 41 (02) ◽

pp. 231-252 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Johannah L. Shergis ◽

Anthony L. Zhang ◽

Wenyu Zhou ◽

Charlie C. Xue

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Panax Ginseng ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Risk Of Bias ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Publication Date ◽

Inclusion Criteria ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Clinical Benefits

Panax ginseng is one of the most frequently used herbs in the world. Numerous trials have evaluated its clinical benefits. However, the quality of these studies has not been comprehensively and systematically assessed. We reviewed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of Panax ginseng to evaluate their quality and risk of bias. We searched four English databases, without publication date restriction. Two reviewers extracted details about the studies' methodological quality, guided by the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) checklist and its extension for herbal interventions. Risk of bias was determined using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. Of 475 potentially relevant studies, 58 met our inclusion criteria. In these 58 studies, 48.3% of the suggested CONSORT checklist items and 35.9% of the extended herbal items were reported. The quality of RCTs published after the CONSORT checklist improved. Until 1995 (before CONSORT) (n = 4), 32.8% of the items were reported in studies. From 1996–2006 (CONSORT published and revised) (n = 30), 46.1% were reported, and from 2007 (n = 24), 53.5% were reported (p = 0.005). After the CONSORT extension for herbal interventions was published in 2006, RCT quality also improved, although not significantly. Until 2005 (n = 34), 35.2% of the extended herbal items were reported in studies; and from 2006 onwards (n = 24), 37.3% were reported (p = 0.64). Most studies classified risk of bias as "unclear". Overall, the quality of Panax ginseng RCT methodology has improved since the CONSORT checklist was introduced. However, more can be done to improve the methodological quality of, and reporting in, RCTs.

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Critical analysis of the drafting of physical therapy randomized controlled trials published in Portuguese

Fisioterapia em Movimento ◽

10.1590/0103-5150.029.002.ao21 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 29 (2) ◽

pp. 421-427

Author(s):

Ercole da Cruz Rubini ◽

Fabio Dutra Pereira ◽

Renato Sobral Monteiro-Junior ◽

Patricia Zaidan ◽

Cintia Pereira de Souza ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Therapy ◽

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Gold Standard ◽

Critical Analysis ◽

Physical Therapists ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

High Quality ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Methodological Procedures

Abstract Introduction: randomized controlled trials are high quality studies. Many problems related to the drafting of these studies have been identified and consequently various national and international journals, in an attempt to improve this writing, have adopted the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials recommendations. Regarding the studies written specifically by physical therapists, until now, the quality of the drafting in Portuguese has been unknown. Aim: To critically analyze the drafting of RCTs in the area of physical therapy, published in Portuguese, in relation to the CONSORT recommendations. Materials and Methods: On 17th Oct, 2012, 548 RCTs in Portuguese were recovered from the MEDLINE and PEDro databases, which were divided among four evaluators who, after reading the abstracts, selected those related to physical therapy. Of these studies, 78 RCTs were related to physical therapy, which were divided among the four evaluators for the analysis of the drafting according to the CONSORT recommendations. The four evaluators who participated in this study previously obtained a median kappa above 70% when their analyses were compared to the analyses of the evaluator considered the gold standard due to having greater experience. Results: The quantity of items of the CONSORT recommendations according to year of publication was very small, corresponding to a mean of 43% of the items in the articles analyzed. Conclusion: The results make very clear the need to improve the quality of the drafting of the RCTs related to physical therapy in Portuguese and to include more rigorous methodological procedures, such as sample size, randomization and blinding. The dissemination and adoption of the CONSORT recommendations by physical therapy researchers would, without doubt, be a big step towards improving this quality.

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Volume and methodological quality of randomized controlled trials in laparoscopic surgery: assessment over a 10-year period

The American Journal of Surgery ◽

10.1016/j.amjsurg.2015.04.022 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 210 (5) ◽

pp. 922-929 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Stavros A. Antoniou ◽

Alexandros Andreou ◽

George A. Antoniou ◽

Oliver O. Koch ◽

Gernot Köhler ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Laparoscopic Surgery ◽

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled

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A systematic review of trends in the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials in various research fields

Journal of Clinical Epidemiology ◽

10.1016/j.jclinepi.2008.07.012 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 62 (3) ◽

pp. 227-231.e9 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

Matthew E. Falagas ◽

Tatiana Grigori ◽

Eleni Ioannidou

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Research Fields

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Characteristic of Clinical Studies on Baduanjin during 2000–2019: A Comprehensive Review

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2020/4783915 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Jing Zhou ◽

Yunyang Yu ◽

Biwei Cao ◽

Xiaoya Li ◽

Miao Wu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Clinical Studies ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Case Reports ◽

Case Series ◽

Small Sample ◽

Chronic Obstructive ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled

To date, a growing number of clinical studies have demonstrated the safety and health benefits from Baduanjin intervention. Based on this, our objective is to systematically retrieve and summarize the clinical studies on Baduanjin, with a view to providing more evidence-based evidence in support of the application of Baduanjin for healthcare, and to identify the shortcomings of existing research and provide feasibility suggest for further clinical research. Both four English language and four Chinese language electronic databases were used to search articles related to Baduanjin during 2000–2019. SPSS 22.0 software was used to analyze the data, and the risk of bias tool in the RevMan 5.3.5 software was used to evaluate the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials. A total of 810 publications were identified, including 43 (5.3%) systematic reviews, 614 (75.8%) randomized controlled trials, 66 (8.1%) nonrandomized controlled clinical studies, 84 (10.4%) case series, and 3 (0.4%) case reports. The top 10 diseases/conditions included diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, low back pain, neck pain, stroke, coronary heart disease, cognitive impairment, insomnia, and osteoporosis or osteopenia. The style of State General Administration of Sport of China in 2003 was the most commonly used version of Baduanjin, and Baduanjin was practiced with an average of 35 minutes, 1 or 2 times a day, 3–5 days per week, and a 18-week average duration. It is also worth noting that there were no serious adverse events related to Baduanjin intervention. Most studies were small sample size research, and the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials is generally low. The clinical studies of Baduanjin have a substantial quantity and evidence base. However, there are significant differences among different studies in the specific intervention measures such as style, intensity, duration, learning, and practice methods, which need to be further standardized and unified. Further high-quality designed and reporting studies are recommended to further validate the clinical benefits of Baduanjin.

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