Randomized trial within a trial of yellow 'post-it notes' did not improve questionnaire response rates among participants in a trial of treatments for neck pain.
BACKGROUND
Attrition is a threat to the validity of randomized trials. Few randomized studies have been conducted within randomized trials to test methods of reducing attrition.


OBJECTIVE
To test whether using yellow post-it notes on follow-up questionnaires in the ATLAS treatment trial for neck pain reduces attrition.


METHODS
Nested trial within a trial. ATLAS participants were randomized to have their 6-month follow-up questionnaire have a 3' yellow post-it note with a handwritten message encouraging return of questionnaire.


RESULTS
499 participants were independently randomized using simple allocation to receive the post-it notes or not. Two hundred fifteen of the 256 (84.0%) participants in the intervention group returned their questionnaire compared with 205 of the 243 (84.4%) in the control group. There was no difference in time to response.


CONCLUSIONS
Yellow post-it notes do not enhance questionnaire return rates for participants in a randomized trial of neck pain.
Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, UK.
Helen E
HE
Tilbrook
Taeko
T
Becque
Hannah
H
Buckley
Hugh
H
MacPherson
Mathew
M
Bailey
David J
DJ
Torgerson
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019547:Neck Pain / Q000628:therapy*; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017010:Reminder Systems; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
attrition; questionnaire response rates; trial within a trial