title: Do we really know what they were testing? Incomplete reporting of interventions in randomised trials of upper limb therapies in unilateral cerebral palsy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Incomplete reporting of components of interventions limits uptake of evidence into clinical practice.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the completeness of reporting of research and control interventions in randomised trials of upper limb therapies for children with unilateral cerebral palsy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty randomized trials were included, encompassing 60 research and 68 control interventions. Using the 12-item Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist, two reviewers independently rated intervention and control descriptions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  When using 50% of studies as the benchmark, five of the 12 TIDieR items for the research intervention, eight of the 12 items for the control intervention and 11 of 12 items for "usual care" interventions were inadequately reported. Procedures used to deliver the research intervention were adequately reported for 63% of studies. Materials were used in 94% of research interventions, yet only 27% provided details to access/replicate materials. Training materials for interventionists were used in 38% of trials, 10 (17%) had procedure manuals, yet only 3 reported details to access materials. The location where the research intervention was provided was detailed in 65% of studies. Reporting of all items was poorer for the control intervention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  No study adequately reported all elements on the TIDieR checklist. Details crucial for replication of interventions and interpretation of results were missing. Authors, reviewers, and editors all have a responsibility to improve the quality of intervention reporting in published trials. The TIDieR guide is a potential solution, helping to structure accounts of interventions.
authors.affiliation: Queensland Cerebral Palsy and Rehabilitation Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. Electronic address: l.sakzewski1@uq.edu.au.
authors.forename: Leanne
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sakzewski
authors.affiliation: Queensland Cerebral Palsy and Rehabilitation Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Reedman
authors.affiliation: Centre for Research in Evidence-Based Practice, Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, Bond University, Gold Coast, Australia.
authors.forename: Tammy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hoffmann
mesh_terms: D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D057189:Checklist; D002648:Child; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D007103:Immobilization; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D058028:Research Report / Q000592:standards*; D034941:Upper Extremity
keywords: Cerebral palsy; Randomised trials; Rehabilitation; Upper limb