Do randomised clinical trials on dental caries adopt Open Science practices?

Area of Science:

• Dental Research
• Clinical Trials
• Open Science

Background:

• Open Science Practices (OSPs) are crucial for research integrity and quality in Randomized Clinical Trials (RCTs).
• Dental caries poses a significant global oral health challenge, necessitating high-quality research for effective interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the adoption rates of various Open Science Practices (OSPs) in Randomized Clinical Trials (RCTs) focused on dental caries.
• To identify trends and influencing factors in OSP adoption within this research area.

Main Methods:

• A systematic search of PubMed for dental caries RCTs published between January 2000 and March 2022.
• Evaluation of a random sample of articles for the adoption of specific OSPs, including reporting guidelines, protocol registration, data sharing, and open access.
• Association analyses were performed using logistic regression, considering publication year, author's continent, journal impact factor, and journal open-access policy.

Main Results:

• Over 64% of dental caries RCTs adopted at least one OSP, but no single OSP exceeded 50% adoption.
• Protocol registration (37.1%), reporting guidelines (33.1%), and open access (37.3%) were the most frequently adopted OSPs.
• Higher adoption rates were observed in more recent publications and studies published in higher impact factor journals.

Conclusions:

• The overall adoption of most Open Science Practices in dental caries RCTs remains low.
• A positive trend towards increased OSP implementation is evident in recent years, aligning with journal recommendations.