The Reporting of Observational Studies of Drug Effectiveness and Safety: Recommendations to Extend Existing Guidelines Publisher Pubmed



Cragg JJ^{1, 2} ; Azoulay L³ ; Collins G⁴ ; De Vera MA¹ ; Etminan M⁵ ; Lalji F¹ ; Gershon AS⁶ ; Guyatt G⁷ ; Harrison M^{1, 8} ; Jutzeler C⁹ ; Kassam R¹⁰ ; Kendzerska T¹¹ ; Lynd L¹ ; Mansournia MA¹² Show All Authors Show Affiliations
Source: Expert Opinion on Drug Safety Published:2021

Abstract

Introduction: The use of observational data to assess drug effectiveness and safety can provide relevant information, much of which may not be feasible to obtain through randomized clinical trials. Because observational studies provide critical drug safety and effectiveness information that influences drug policy and prescribing practices, transparent, consistent, and accurate reporting of these studies is critical. Areas Covered: We provide recommendations to extend existing reporting guidelines, covering the main components of primary research studies (methods, results, discussion). Expert Opinion: Our recommendations include extending drug safety and effectiveness guidelines to include explicit checklist items on: study registration, causal diagrams, rationale for measures of effect, comprehensive assessment of bias, comprehensive data cleaning steps, drug equivalents, subject-level drug data visualization, sex and gender-based analyses and results, patient-oriented outcomes, and patient involvement in research. © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.