Evaluation of the Completeness of Interventions Reported in Published Randomized Controlled Trials in Plastic Surgery: A Systematic Review

Abstract Background With the increasing number of randomized control trials being conducted and published in plastic surgery, complete reporting of trial information is critical for readers to properly evaluate a trial’s methodology and arrive at appropriate conclusions about its merits and applicability to patients. The Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist was introduced to address the limited guidance for reporting trial interventions. Objectives The authors applied the TIDieR checklist to evaluate the completeness of intervention reporting of randomized control trials in plastic surgery, compare the quality of intervention reporting before and after the guideline was published, and evaluate characteristics associated with TIDieR compliance. Methods A PubMed search identified 1 cohort published prior to the release of TIDieR and another published after its release. From the final sample, the TIDieR checklist was applied to intervention descriptions, and relevant study characteristics were extracted in a duplicate, blinded manner. Results In total, 130 trials were included for analysis. The mean TIDieR score was 6.4 of 12. Five items were reported 90% of the time, and 4 items were reported less than 10% of the time. We found that TIDieR publication did not affect intervention reporting (P = 0.22). Conclusions Our study identified areas in which intervention reporting could be improved. The extent of TIDieR adoption by trialists appears to be limited, and greater efforts are needed to disseminate this reporting guideline if widespread uptake is to be expected. Alternately, it may be beneficial to incorporate TIDieR into the more widely recognized Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials statement.