[Interpretation of Guidelines for controlling confounding factors and reporting results in causal inference studies]

Causal inference research is a causal test designed to assess the impact of exposures on outcomes.Both experimental and observational studies can be used to examine causal associations between exposure factors and outcomes. Experimental studies are sometimes limited by factors such as ethics or experimental conditions. Observational studies account for a large proportion in clinical studies, but the effectiveness and research value of observational studies will be affected if the design of observational studies is not rigorous and the confounding factors are not well controlled.The Guidelines for controlling confounding factors and reporting results in causal inference studie formulated by a special group of 47 editors from 35 journals from all over the world provide good guidance to researchers. This article interprets the guidelines and hopes to provide help for clinical researchers.