Adherence to CONSORT guidelines in selected general orthopaedic journals

The aim of this study was to evaluate the adherence to the CONSORT guidelines in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in general orthopaedic and trauma journals.

A total of 100 RCTs published between January 2019 and November 2024 from four general orthopaedic and trauma journals were reviewed for adherence to the 2010 CONSORT guidelines. Each study was assessed by three independent reviewers, with agreement quantified using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). The rates of adherence were calculated for each of the 37 CONSORT checklist items.

The overall adherence to CONSORT guidelines ranged from 17% to 100%, with a mean rate of adherence of 86% (95% CI 85 to 87). A total of 26 items had rates of adherence of ≥ 90%; 14 achieved perfect adherence. However, significant deficiencies were noted in several areas, including the reporting of roles in the process of randomization (sequence generation and assignment of patients to interventions; 17%), the sharing of original protocols (17%), and the reasons for losses and exclusions after randomization (62%). Adherence to reporting both absolute and relative effect sizes for binary outcomes was also suboptimal, at 52%.

The quality of reporting in orthopaedic RCTs has improved in recent years, but several areas remain under-reported, highlighting the need for ongoing enforcement and better integration of CONSORT guidelines in the peer review process. Continued efforts by authors and the editors and reviewers of journals should focus on improving the reporting of methodological details and transparency in the handling of data to ensure more reliable and clinically relevant evidence.