title: More informative abstracts revisited.
abstract: Following proposals in 1987 and 1988, several medical journals have provided more informative abstracts ("structured abstracts") for articles of clinical interest. Structured abstracts for original studies require authors to systematically disclose the objective, basic research design, clinical setting, participants, interventions (if any), main outcome measurements, results, and conclusions; and for literature reviews the objective, data sources, methods of study selection, data extraction and synthesis, and conclusions. More informative abstracts of this kind can facilitate peer review before publication, assist clinical readers to find articles that are both scientifically sound and applicable to their practices, and allow more precise computerized literature searches. We review the feasibility, acceptability, and dissemination of structured abstracts, reassess the underlying strategy, and describe modifications of the approach. This innovation can aid communication from scientists to clinicians, and other clinical journals are invited to join this effort.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology, McMaster University Faculty of Health Sciences, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: R B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Haynes
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Mulrow
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Huth
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Altman
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Gardner
mesh_terms: D000043:Abstracting and Indexing / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D003142:Communication; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D007256:Information Systems; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010380:Peer Review; D010506:Periodicals as Topic; D012107:Research Design; D012196:Review Literature as Topic