Reporting Guidelines — Standards Navigator

1. What a Reporting Guideline Is

A reporting guideline is a structured tool—often a checklist, flow diagram or structured text—designed to identify the minimum information readers need to understand and use a specific type of research. It improves transparency of reporting; it does not itself guarantee that the study was well designed or conducted.

2. Select by Study Design, Not by Article Label

Start with what the study actually did. An 'Original Article' could be a randomized trial, cohort study, diagnostic-accuracy study, prediction-model study or qualitative investigation, each requiring different reporting guidance.

3. Use the Guideline While Writing

Do not wait until the submission portal asks for a checklist. Apply the guideline during manuscript preparation so missing methods, outcomes, flow information and declarations can be corrected in the article itself.

4. Reporting Is Not Methodological Quality Scoring

A manuscript can report a weak method completely, and a strong study can be reported incompletely. Editors and reviewers should not use checklist completion as a numerical quality score.

5. Core Guideline Plus Extension

Many research designs require both a core guideline and one or more extensions. Extensions may address special designs, interventions, populations, data sources, abstracts or methodological features.

6. Multiple Guidelines May Legitimately Apply

A trial with an economic evaluation may need CONSORT plus CHEERS; an observational study using routinely collected health data may need STROBE plus RECORD; an intervention report may use its design guideline plus TIDieR.

7. Use the Current Applicable Version

Reporting standards evolve. Authors should check the official guideline source and the target journal’s current instructions rather than relying on an old checklist saved from a previous submission.

8. Journal-Specific Requirements Still Apply

A Treata journal may require particular checklists, flow diagrams, protocol files, page-number mapping or extensions. Publisher-level guidance does not imply that every journal has identical submission requirements.

Standards navigator

Major Reporting Standards

Use these summaries to identify a likely framework, then verify the current version and extensions at the authoritative source and target journal.

CONSORT

Randomized trials

Use when: Use for reports of randomized trials. Select applicable extensions for cluster, crossover, non-inferiority/equivalence, pragmatic, pilot/feasibility and other specialized trial designs.

Checklist use: Checklist + participant-flow information; journal configuration may require upload of the completed checklist and flow diagram.

Important: Use the current applicable CONSORT version and extensions; do not use CONSORT to disguise non-randomized allocation.

STROBE

Observational studies

Use when: Use for cohort, case-control and cross-sectional observational studies. Extensions exist for several specialized settings and data types.

Checklist use: Map checklist items to the manuscript; report participant selection, variables, bias, study size, quantitative variables and statistical methods transparently.

Important: STROBE improves reporting; it is not a quality score and does not convert an observational study into causal evidence.

PRISMA

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Use when: Use for systematic reviews; select extensions for scoping reviews, searches, network meta-analysis and other evidence-synthesis contexts where applicable.

Checklist use: PRISMA 2020 includes a checklist, expanded checklist, abstract checklist and flow diagrams. Provide page/section references and the study-selection flow.

Important: Do not label a narrative review 'systematic' merely because PRISMA terminology is attractive.

SPIRIT

Clinical trial protocols

Use when: Use for protocols of clinical trials. Select extensions when the protocol population/intervention or trial design requires them.

Checklist use: Use the protocol checklist while writing, not after completion. Align protocol content with registration, ethics documentation and planned analyses.

Important: Protocol reporting and final trial reporting are distinct: SPIRIT guides protocols; CONSORT guides completed randomized-trial reports.

PRISMA-P

Systematic review protocols

Use when: Use for protocols describing planned systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Checklist use: Report rationale, objectives, eligibility, information sources, search, selection, data management, outcomes, bias assessment and synthesis plans as applicable.

Important: Do not retrospectively rewrite a completed review as though its methods were prospectively planned.

STARD

Diagnostic accuracy studies

Use when: Use for studies estimating diagnostic accuracy of a test or method against an appropriate reference standard.

Checklist use: Report participant selection, index test, reference standard, thresholds, flow/timing and accuracy estimates with uncertainty.

Important: Diagnostic-accuracy reporting differs from prediction-model reporting; choose the framework that matches the research question.

TRIPOD

Prediction model studies

Use when: Use for development, validation or updating of multivariable prediction models for diagnosis or prognosis; use the current applicable TRIPOD family guidance for the model type.

Checklist use: Describe participants, predictors, outcomes, sample size, missing data, modeling, performance, validation and presentation of the model.

Important: Machine-learning terminology does not remove prediction-model reporting obligations; select AI-specific extensions/guidance when applicable.

CARE

Case reports

Use when: Use for clinically informative case reports and relevant extensions where applicable.

Checklist use: Use the checklist to structure patient information, timeline, diagnostic assessment, intervention, follow-up, outcomes and patient perspective where appropriate.

Important: Reporting guidance does not replace publication consent or privacy review.

COREQ

Qualitative research — interviews/focus groups

Use when: Use particularly for qualitative studies based on interviews and focus groups.

Checklist use: Address research team/reflexivity, study design, setting, sampling, data collection, analysis and reporting.

Important: Do not force qualitative designs outside COREQ’s intended scope into the checklist; SRQR may be more suitable.

SRQR

Qualitative research — broad

Use when: Use across a broad range of qualitative research approaches.

Checklist use: Report qualitative approach, researcher characteristics/reflexivity, context, sampling, ethics, data collection, analysis, trustworthiness and synthesis clearly.

Important: Choose between or combine qualitative guidance thoughtfully; avoid duplicate checklist burden without a reason.

ARRIVE

Animal research

Use when: Use for in vivo animal research and relevant preclinical animal studies.

Checklist use: Report design, sample size, inclusion/exclusion, randomization, blinding, outcome measures, statistics, animal details, procedures and welfare information.

Important: ARRIVE reporting does not replace ethical approval, legal requirements or animal-welfare responsibilities.

SQUIRE

Quality improvement studies

Use when: Use for systematic work intended to improve healthcare quality, safety, value or delivery.

Checklist use: Describe local problem, rationale, intervention, context, measures, analysis, ethical considerations, results and interpretation.

Important: Distinguish quality-improvement reporting from conventional clinical research while recognizing that projects can have overlapping governance requirements.

CHEERS

Health economic evaluations

Use when: Use for economic evaluations of health interventions and policies, including relevant model-based analyses.

Checklist use: Report perspective, setting, comparators, time horizon, discounting, outcomes, resources/costs, model assumptions, uncertainty and distributional considerations as applicable.

Important: Economic evaluation may accompany a trial or model; use other design-specific guidance in addition to CHEERS when needed.

AGREE / RIGHT

Clinical practice guidelines

Use when: Use appropriate guideline-development/reporting frameworks when reporting clinical practice guidelines or recommendations.

Checklist use: Describe scope, stakeholders, evidence methods, recommendation development, conflicts, funding, review and updating processes.

Important: These frameworks address guideline reporting/development and are not substitutes for reporting the underlying primary studies.

TIDieR

Intervention description

Use when: Use as a companion when an intervention requires detailed description for replication; relevant extensions exist.

Checklist use: Describe what was delivered, why, materials, procedures, providers, mode, location, dose, tailoring, modifications and fidelity.

Important: TIDieR commonly complements rather than replaces the primary study-design guideline.

RECORD

Routinely collected health data

Use when: Use as a STROBE extension for observational research using routinely collected health data.

Checklist use: Clarify data sources, linkage, codes/algorithms, validation, access and selection issues.

Important: Use with STROBE rather than treating RECORD as a standalone substitute.

REMARK

Tumor marker prognostic studies

Use when: Use for studies evaluating prognostic tumor markers where applicable.

Checklist use: Report patient/sample selection, assay methods, study design, statistical analysis and results with sufficient detail for interpretation.

Important: Use additional guidance if the work is primarily a prediction-model or diagnostic-accuracy study.

GRIPS

Genetic risk prediction

Use when: Use for studies developing or evaluating genetic risk prediction models.

Checklist use: Report study population, variables, model construction, validation, performance and interpretation transparently.

Important: Apply alongside broader prediction-model guidance when relevant.

STREGA

Genetic association studies

Use when: Use as an extension of STROBE for genetic association research.

Checklist use: Address genotyping, population stratification, haplotypes, Hardy–Weinberg considerations, replication and related genetic-analysis issues where applicable.

Important: Use together with core observational reporting principles.

MOOSE

Meta-analyses of observational studies

Use when: Historically used for meta-analyses of observational studies; authors should also consider current PRISMA guidance and applicable extensions.

Checklist use: Report search, selection, data abstraction, study characteristics, quantitative synthesis and bias considerations transparently.

Important: When multiple frameworks overlap, use the most current and design-relevant guidance rather than mechanically uploading redundant checklists.

How to Decide Between Similar Guidelines

When two frameworks appear plausible, define the research question, unit of analysis, study design and principal inferential goal. Diagnostic accuracy, prediction, prognosis and causal-effect studies can use similar datasets but require different reporting. When necessary, document why a particular guideline was selected.

How to Find an Extension

After selecting the core guideline, search for extensions by design, population, intervention, data source, clinical area or report component. Examples include abstracts, cluster trials, pragmatic trials, scoping reviews, literature searches and routinely collected data. An extension supplements the core unless its documentation explicitly states otherwise.

How to Complete a Checklist

Work item by item. For each applicable item, identify the exact page, paragraph, table, figure or supplement where it is reported. If an item is genuinely not applicable, use the journal’s accepted notation and explain when useful. Never enter a page number for information that is not actually present.

Do Not Treat 'N/A' as an Escape Route

Not applicable should mean the item does not apply to the design or circumstances. It should not be used because the information is unavailable, inconvenient, unfavorable or omitted from the study.

Page Numbers and Section Mapping

Complete the checklist against the final submission version. Late editing can change pagination and section locations, so recheck mappings after generating the final manuscript PDF.

Flow Diagrams

When a framework includes a flow diagram, ensure counts reconcile with the Results and tables. Trial participant flow and systematic-review study-selection flow are not decorative graphics; they document inclusion, exclusion and analysis pathways.

Checklist and Manuscript Must Agree

The checklist is an index to the manuscript, not a parallel version of the research record. Sample sizes, dates, outcomes, registration, analyses and other facts must remain consistent across both.

Protocol and Registration Cross-Check

For registered or protocol-driven research, compare the reporting checklist with the protocol, registry and statistical analysis plan. Reporting completeness should not conceal unexplained deviations from prespecified methods.

Abstract-Specific Guidance

Some reporting frameworks include dedicated abstract checklists or extensions. Because abstracts are frequently read without the full article, authors should report essential design and result information rather than using the abstract as promotional copy.

Reporting Interventions Completely

Even a correctly reported trial may be difficult to replicate if the intervention is poorly described. Companion frameworks such as TIDieR can provide additional structure for intervention content, delivery, dose, tailoring and fidelity.

Reporting AI and Machine-Learning Research

AI or machine-learning studies may require both a core design framework and specialized reporting guidance or extensions. Authors should report data provenance, preprocessing, model development, validation, performance, human oversight and limitations at a level appropriate to the scientific claim.

Reporting Routinely Collected and Real-World Data

Administrative, registry, electronic-health-record and other routinely collected data require transparent reporting of source systems, coding, linkage, coverage, access, missingness and selection mechanisms. Extensions such as RECORD may supplement STROBE.

Reporting Mixed-Methods Research

Mixed-methods studies should make the quantitative and qualitative components, integration strategy and rationale clear. Apply component-specific reporting guidance where appropriate without creating contradictory duplicate descriptions.

Reporting Secondary and Subgroup Analyses

Secondary analyses should identify the parent dataset/study, original purpose, new question, selection of analytic sample and whether analyses were prespecified. Relevant reporting guidance follows the design of the secondary analysis as well as the provenance of the data.

Reporting Negative or Inconclusive Results

Reporting standards apply regardless of direction or statistical significance. Null or inconclusive findings still require complete methods, outcomes, uncertainty and limitations; selective omission undermines the research record.

Reporting Guidelines and Ethics

A checklist does not substitute for ethics approval, consent, trial registration, animal oversight, data governance or privacy protection. These are separate obligations that may also be items within a reporting framework.

Reporting Guidelines and Peer Review

Treata journals may use reporting guidelines during initial assessment and peer review to identify missing information. Editors and reviewers should request reporting necessary to evaluate the work while avoiding mechanical demands for irrelevant checklist items.

What Treata May Require at Submission

Depending on journal and article type, the submission system may request the guideline name, completed checklist, flow diagram, protocol or registry identifier, supplementary reporting files and confirmation that applicable extensions were considered.

What Happens When Reporting Is Incomplete

A manuscript may be returned for technical correction, queried during editorial assessment, or asked to address omissions during peer review. Severe or systematic discrepancies between checklist claims and the manuscript can also raise broader integrity questions.

Treata Reporting Standards Rule

Authors should identify and use the most appropriate current reporting guidance for their study design, apply relevant extensions, complete required checklists accurately, and ensure all checklist claims correspond to the submitted manuscript. Journal-specific instructions determine which reporting files are mandatory.

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