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ABSTRACT: Objective
To aid trialists, systematic reviewers and others, we evaluated the degree of standardisation of control measure reporting that has occurred in atrial fibrillation (AF) and venous thromboembolism (VTE) studies since 2000; and attempted to determine whether the prior recommendation of reporting ≥2 measures per study has been employed.Design
Systematic review.Search strategy
We searched bibliographic databases (2000 to June 2013) to identify AF and VTE studies evaluating dose-adjusted vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) and reporting ≥1 control measure. The types of measures reported, proportion of studies reporting ≥2 measures and mean (±SD) number of measures per study were determined for all studies and compared between subgroups.Data extraction
Through the use of a standardised data extraction tool, we independently extracted all data, with disagreements resolved by a separate investigator.Results
148 studies were included, 57% of which reported ≥2 control measures (mean/study=2.13±1.36). The proportion of time spent in the target international normalised ratio range (TTR) was most commonly reported (79%), and was frequently accompanied by time above/below range (52%). AF studies more frequently reported ≥2 control measures compared with VTE studies (63% vs 37%; p=0.004), and reported a greater number of measures per study (mean=2.36 vs 1.53; p<0.001). Observational studies were more likely to provide ≥2 measures compared with randomised trials (76% vs 33%; p<0.001) and report a greater number of measures (mean=2.58 vs 1.63; p<0.001). More recent studies (2004-2013) reported ≥2 measures more often than older (2000-2003) studies (59% vs 35%; p=0.05) and reported more measures per study (mean=2.23 vs 1.48; p=0.02).Conclusions
While TTR was often utilised, studies reported ≥2 measures of VKA control only about half of the time and lacked consistency in the types of measures reported. A trend towards studies reporting greater numbers of VKA control measures over time was observed over our review time horizon, particularly, with AF and observational studies.
SUBMITTER: Mearns ES
PROVIDER: S-EPMC4067815 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jun
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Mearns Elizabeth S ES Hawthorne Jessica J Song Ju-Sung JS Coleman Craig I CI
BMJ open 20140620 6
<h4>Objective</h4>To aid trialists, systematic reviewers and others, we evaluated the degree of standardisation of control measure reporting that has occurred in atrial fibrillation (AF) and venous thromboembolism (VTE) studies since 2000; and attempted to determine whether the prior recommendation of reporting ≥2 measures per study has been employed.<h4>Design</h4>Systematic review.<h4>Search strategy</h4>We searched bibliographic databases (2000 to June 2013) to identify AF and VTE studies eva ...[more]