FULL PUBLICATION OF RESULTS INITIALLY PRESENTED IN ABSTRACTS - A METAANALYSIS

Objectives.-To estimate the rate of full publication of the results of randomized clinical trials initially presented as abstracts at nation al ophthalmology meetings in 1988 and 1989; and to combine data from t his study with data from similar studies to determine the rate at whic h abstracts are subsequently published in full and the association bet ween selected study characteristics and full publication. Data Sources .-Ophthalmology abstracts were identified by review of 1988 and 1989 m eeting abstracts for the Association for Research in Vision and Ophtha lmology and the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Similar studies wer e identified either from reports contained in our files or through a M EDLINE search, which combined the textword ''abstract'' with ''or'' st atements to the Medical Subject Headings ABSTRACTING and INDEXING, CLI NICAL TRIALS, PEER REVIEW, PERIODICALS, MEDICAL SOCIETIES, PUBLISHING, MEDLINE, INFORMATION SERVICES, and REGISTRIES. Study Selection.-Ophth almology abstracts were selected from the meeting proceedings if they reported results from a randomized controlled trial. For the summary s tudy, similar studies were eligible for inclusion if they described fo llowup and subsequent full publication for a cohort of abstracts descr ibing the results of any type of research study. All studies had to ha ve followed up abstracts for at least 24 months to be included. Data E xtraction.-Authors of ophthalmology abstracts were contacted by letter to ascertain whether there was subsequent full publication. Other inf ormation, including characteristics of the study design possibly relat ed to publication, was taken from the abstract. For the summary study, rates of full publication were taken directly from reported results, as were associations between study factors (ie, ''significant'' result s and sample size) and full publication. Data Synthesis.-Sixty-six per cent (61/93) of ophthalmology abstracts were published in full. Combin ed results from 11 studies showed that 51% (1198/2391) of all abstract s were subsequently published in full. Full publication was weakly ass ociated with ''significant'' results and sample size above the median. Conclusions.-Approximately one half of all studies initially presente d in abstract form are subsequently published as full-length reports. Most are published in full within 2 years of appearance as abstracts. Full publication may be associated with ''significant'' results and sa mple size.