What to call your medical records-based study.

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Clinical Research
• Epidemiology
• Research Methodology

Background:

• Ambiguity in veterinary research terminology, specifically
• retrospective study
• and
• prospective study
• , can lead to misinterpretation of observational study designs.
• Study designs such as cohort, case-control, cross-sectional, and case series can be either retrospective or prospective based on data collection timing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide a clear framework for accurately identifying and reporting observational study designs in veterinary clinical research.
• To reduce misinterpretation of study designs by emphasizing the importance of specifying the observational methodology.
• To offer a practical tool and illustrative examples for investigators.

Main Methods:

• A viewpoint article presenting a simple classification tool for study designs.
• Utilized published veterinary clinical research examples to demonstrate the application of the tool.
• Focused on the relationship between data collection timing and study design nomenclature.

Main Results:

• Identified common misinterpretations of
• retrospective
• and
• prospective
• when used without specific study design terms.
• Demonstrated how different observational designs (cohort, case-control, etc.) can be implemented retrospectively or prospectively.
• Highlighted the impact of study design and data collection timing on the risk of bias.

Conclusions:

• Retrospective
• and
• prospective
• should always be accompanied by a specific study design term (e.g., retrospective cohort study) in veterinary research.
• Accurate reporting of study design is essential for understanding potential biases and ensuring the validity of research findings.
• Clearer reporting standards will enhance the quality and interpretability of veterinary clinical research.