Incomplete data reporting in studies of emergency department patients with potential acute coronary syndromes using troponins

Objectives: A multidisciplinary panel of experts is developing standardized reporting criteria for risk stratification studies of emergency department (ED) patients with potential acute coronary syndromes (ACS). The authors assessed the need for such criteria by reviewing published studies to determine whether these core criteria currently are being reported. Methods: Studies published during 2000-2001 in eight journals representing emergency medicine, cardiology, and general medicine that evaluated the cardiac troponins for risk stratification of ED patients with chest pain were identified by a systematic MEDLINE review. Two raters independently analyzed each study with a structured tool. The presence or absence of 47 core criteria in eight major reporting categories, which were determined by expert consensus, was abstracted from the articles. When the two raters disagreed, discrepancies were resolved by consensus. Data are presented as percent frequency of occurrence with 95% confidence intervals. Results: Twenty-two articles met inclusion criteria. The two reviewers had a median of 7.5 initial discrepancies per article (interquartile range=6 to 10) but achieved consensus on all. The median of the percent of articles reporting the core criteria within each major reporting category is shown: Conclusions: Many of the 47 items considered core criteria by the expert committee writing standardized reporting guidelines for risk stratification studies of potential ACS patients were not reported often in major cardiology and emergency medicine journals. There seems to be a need for standardized reporting guidelines because important information is not currently being reported. Key words: reporting criteria; myocardial infarction; acute coronary syndrome; troponin; complications; risk stratification. Conclusions: Many of the 47 items considered core criteria by the expert committee writing standardized reporting guidelines for risk stratification studies of potential ACS patients were not reported often in major cardiology and emergency medicine journals. There seems to be a need for standardized reporting guidelines because important information is not currently being reported.