How Accurate Are References in Clinical Chemistry
01 Mar 2001-Clinical Chemistry (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)-Vol. 47, Iss: 3, pp 606-607
TL;DR: The aim of this study was to determine the reference error rate in Clinical Chemistry, and the December 1999 issue of the Journal was selected for the study.
Abstract: Readers of articles in biomedical journals may wish to follow up a cited reference to further their knowledge, to verify claims made by the authors, or to obtain details of an analytical method. To easily retrieve the cited article, it is essential that the reference be accurate, especially in regard to the journal title, the year of publication, the volume number, and the first page number.
Previous studies have shown that references in published articles in general medical journals (1)(2) and in specialist biomedical journals (3)(4)(5)(6) frequently contain errors. Reference error rates of 8% to >50% have been found in biomedical journals (1)(3). To our knowledge, no study has been done to assess the accuracy of references in clinical chemistry biomedical journals. The aim of this study was to determine the reference error rate in Clinical Chemistry .
The December 1999 issue of the Journal was selected for the study. It contained 2 Editorials, 1 Review, 23 Articles, 1 Case Conference, 12 Technical Briefs, 5 Letters, and 1 Reply. All of the references cited in these were checked for accuracy with Medline from the National Library of Medicine (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/PubMed). References excluded were those not listed in Medline, such as book chapters, newspapers, website articles, theses, articles in press, and articles before 1966. Errors in the references were categorized as belonging to one of the six main elements of a reference, these being (a) …
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TL;DR: A considerable error rate was identified in the references of five biomedical informatics journals and authors are responsible for the accuracy of references and should more carefully check them, possibly using informatics-based assistance.
58 citations
TL;DR: There is some evidence that the 'package' of technical editing used by biomedical journals does improve papers, and to assess the level of accuracy of references to these reports.
Abstract: Background
Most journals try to improve their articles by technical editing processes such as proof-reading, editing to conform to 'house styles', grammatical conventions and checking accuracy of cited references. Despite the considerable resources devoted to technical editing, we do not know whether it improves the accessibility of biomedical research findings or the utility of articles. This is an update of a Cochrane methodology review first published in 2003.
Objectives
To assess the effects of technical editing on research reports in peer-reviewed biomedical journals, and to assess the level of accuracy of references to these reports.
Search methods
We searched The Cochrane Library Issue 2, 2007; MEDLINE (last searched July 2006); EMBASE (last searched June 2007) and checked relevant articles for further references. We also searched the Internet and contacted researchers and experts in the field.
Selection criteria
Prospective or retrospective comparative studies of technical editing processes applied to original research articles in biomedical journals, as well as studies of reference accuracy.
Data collection and analysis
Two review authors independently assessed each study against the selection criteria and assessed the methodological quality of each study. One review author extracted the data, and the second review author repeated this.
Main results
We located 32 studies addressing technical editing and 66 surveys of reference accuracy. Only three of the studies were randomised controlled trials.
A 'package' of largely unspecified editorial processes applied between acceptance and publication was associated with improved readability in two studies and improved reporting quality in another two studies, while another study showed mixed results after stricter editorial policies were introduced. More intensive editorial processes were associated with fewer errors in abstracts and references. Providing instructions to authors was associated with improved reporting of ethics requirements in one study and fewer errors in references in two studies, but no difference was seen in the quality of abstracts in one randomised controlled trial. Structuring generally improved the quality of abstracts, but increased their length. The reference accuracy studies showed a median citation error rate of 38% and a median quotation error rate of 20%.
Authors' conclusions
Surprisingly few studies have evaluated the effects of technical editing rigorously. However there is some evidence that the 'package' of technical editing used by biomedical journals does improve papers. A substantial number of references in biomedical articles are cited or quoted inaccurately.
49 citations
Dissertation•
23 Sep 2008
TL;DR: In conclusion, IPSP literature is scattered across multiple established databases, limiting the effectiveness of simple searches using one or two terms and only one database, and many projects may be suffering from a lack of complete data on which to base their actions and conclusions.
Abstract: Injuries are a serious public health problem worldwide. Despite the ubiquity of the World Wide Web and the resources of many different literature databases, the search for information concerning Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion (IPSP) topics is still complicated by several major barriers. IPSP is a multi-disciplinary field, making use of literature from at least 30 widely disparate professions. Each profession uses technical language that may not be fully understood by those in other fields. Each publishes in different journals, and those journals may be indexed in different databases. This thesis draws information from database users and database searches in this multidisciplinary field in an effort clarify the strengths and weaknesses of 1) the searchers query techniques and 2) the content and search systems of their data resources.. Six studies each provide a perspective on the issues involved in finding useful material within the body of scientific knowledge relevant to IPSP. With each of the different perspectives on the information-seeking process, there are gaps in knowledge about the seekers, the bibliographic information resources, and how to access the needed items within the databases. The first study uses three sources to identify the concepts that are important to the field of IPSP and the terms that label them. An inventory of concepts and terms was gathered from: 1) dictionaries, glossaries, and thesauri; 2) the contents of selected scholarly journals; and 3) the search terms used to query a database of IPSP literature. An abundance of concepts and terms were identified – at least 3500 concepts labeled with almost 11,000 terms. Three studies (Studies IV, V, and VI) examined the information sources from which IPSP-relevant knowledge may be obtained. Study IV inventoried the scholarly journals that publish IPSP articles and the databases that index them. Study V assessed the usefulness of the controlled search vocabularies of two popular databases (MEDLINE and PsycINFO) for finding articles on key IPSP topics. Study VI examined the contents of four databases to evaluate the breadth of literature available from a single database. There are 597 scholarly journals that publish four or more IPSP relevant articles per year but no literature database includes the contents of all years of all of the 597 journals. The search vocabularies of MEDLINE and PsycINFO are of limited help to finding all articles contained in the databases on five key IPSP topics. When the EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases are thoroughly searched for articles on five IPSP topics, it was found that the proportion of articles common to all databases was low (5.6% to 16.7%). Studies II and III looked at the knowledge, skills, and practices of IPSP informationseekers. Study II examined the SafetyLit website logs and found that searchers only use one or two textword terms to search the SafetyLit archive and that, by not using more terms, they miss much of what the database contains on their topic. Study III surveyed subscribers to the weekly SafetyLit Literature Update Bulletin and found that nonlibrarian searchers rarely used more than one database and that the most-used database was MEDLINE. The non-librarian searchers seldom used query aids and strategies that could improve their results. They had little or no training in searching the databases they used but reported that they were quite satisfied with the results of their searches. In conclusion, IPSP literature is scattered across multiple established databases, limiting the effectiveness of simple searches using one or two terms and only one database. Unfortunately, surveys showed that these simple searches are the rule in IPSP, suggesting that many projects may be suffering from a lack of complete data on which to base their actions and conclusions. LIST OF PUBLICATIONS I. Lawrence, DW, Guard, A, Meier, A, Laflamme, L. Developing the injury prevention and safety promotion thesaurus, international English edition: An interdisciplinary tool for indexing and searching for research literature. Progress report 1. Safety Science 2006; 44(4): 279-296. II. Lawrence, DW (2007). Using online databases to find peer-reviewed journal articles on injury prevention and safety promotion research: A study of textword queries by SafetyLit users. Injury Prevention 2007; 13(4): 232-236. III. Lawrence DW, Laflamme L. Using online databases to find articles on injury prevention and safety promotion topics: How do SafetyLit subscribers use other databases? Safety Science 2008; (accepted, doi: 10.1016/j.ssci.2008.01.004). IV. Lawrence DW, Laflamme L. Using online databases to find journal articles on injury prevention and safety promotion research: Key journals and the databases that index them. Injury Prevention 2008; 14(2): 91-95. V. Lawrence DW. How useful are the controlled search term vocabularies of MEDLINE and PsycINFO for finding articles relevant to injury prevention and safety promotion? The products of librarian-constructed search strategies versus textword searches. Submitted. VI. Lawrence DW. What is lost when searching only one literature database for articles relevant to injury prevention and safety promotion? Injury Prevention 2008; Accepted. All papers were reproduced with permission from the copyright holders. CONTENTS Introduction .......................................................................................... 1 Background .......................................................................................... 3 Information and Understanding ...................................................................4 Information .........................................................................................4 Meaning, Words, Communication .....................................................4 Terminology and Jargon.....................................................................4 Information Sources .....................................................................................9 Scholarly Journals...............................................................................9 Literature Databases .........................................................................13 Information-seeking ...................................................................................17 Ways of Seeking Information ..........................................................18 Browsing ...........................................................................................18 Querying ...........................................................................................19 Methods of Searching Databases .....................................................20 The Information-Seeking Behavior of Scholars........................................34 Informational Literacy......................................................................35 Access to Information.......................................................................35 Summary of Knowledge and Relevance for Research..............................47 Aims and Objectives.......................................................................... 49 Information and Understanding .................................................................49 Information Sources ...................................................................................49 Information-Seeking Behavior...................................................................49 Materials and Methods ...................................................................... 50 Setting Place, Time and Circumstances ..................................................50 Data Sources, Study Objects, Methods......................................................52 Information and Understanding .......................................................54 Information Sources and Their Function .........................................55 Information-Seeking Behavior.........................................................61 Results ................................................................................................ 65 Information and Understanding .................................................................65 Information Sources and Their Function...................................................66 Information-Seeking Behavior...................................................................72 Discussion .......................................................................................... 77 Main Findings.............................................................................................77 Information and Understanding .......................................................77 Information Sources and Their Function .........................................78 Information-Seeking Behavior.........................................................80 Future research and Other potential ...........................................................85 Overarching Limitations of the studies......................................................85 The unending nature of data.............................................................85 Arbitrary thresholds..........................................................................86 Instructions in requests and in surveys ............................................86 Convenience samples .......................................................................87 Heterogeneity and nonspecificity of the target population ............. 87 The focus on scholarly journal articles ............................................ 87 Conclusions........................................................................................ 89 Acknowledgements ........................................................................... 91 Appendices......................................................................................... 96 Appendix 1: Injuries as a public health problem.......
22 citations
TL;DR: The highest percentage of reference errors was 49.1 percent (Information and Management) and the overall error rates were: author, page number, article title, volume, publication year, and journal title.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to determine the percentage of reference errors and type of errors in four library and information science (LIS) journals.Design/methodology/approach – Research articles from issues published in 2007 were selected for analysis. The references were compared to online freely available tables of contents. The errors identified were categorised into six elements: journal title; author(s); article title; publication year; volume; and page numbers.Findings – The highest percentage of reference errors was 49.1 percent (Information and Management). The overall error rates were: author (56 percent), page number (22 percent), article title (15 percent), volume (3 percent), publication year (2 percent) and journal title (2 percent).Research limitations/implications – The tables of contents (ToCs) used to compare the article references may not have correctly recorded the article details. Not all journal references could be reviewed as not all journal ToCs are available online. This one year,...
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References
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TL;DR: Data in the abstract that are inconsistent with or absent from the article's body are common, even in large-circulation general medical journals, and therefore it is particularly important that the abstract reflect the article faithfully.
Abstract: ContextThe section of a research article most likely to be
read is the abstract, and therefore it is particularly important that
the abstract reflect the article faithfully.ObjectiveTo assess abstracts accompanying research articles
published in 6 medical journals with respect to whether data in the
abstract could be verified in the article itself.DesignAnalysis of simple random samples of 44 articles and
their accompanying abstracts published during 1 year (July 1, 1996-June
30, 1997) in each of 5 major general medical journals (Annals of
Internal Medicine, BMJ, JAMA, Lancet,
and New England Journal of Medicine) and a consecutive sample
of 44 articles published during 15 months (July 1, 1996-August 15,
1997) in the CMAJ.Main Outcome MeasureAbstracts were considered deficient if they
contained data that were either inconsistent with corresponding data in
the article's body (including tables and figures) or not found in the
body at all.ResultsThe proportion of deficient abstracts varied widely
(18%-68%) and to a statistically significant degree
(P<.001) among the 6 journals studied.ConclusionsData in the abstract that are inconsistent with or
absent from the article's body are common, even in large-circulation
general medical journals.
268 citations
TL;DR: The data support the hypothesis that authors do not check their references or may not even read them, and the hypothesis may be expanded to maintain that reviewers do notCheck references.
Abstract: Fifty randomly selected references from a single monthly issue of The American Journal of Surgery; Surgery, Gynecology and Obstetrics; and Surgery were evaluated for citation and quotation errors. Thirteen major and 41 minor citation errors were found in the three journals. Thirty-seven major quotation errors were identified. The data support the hypothesis that authors do not check their references or may not even read them. This hypothesis may be expanded to maintain that reviewers do not check references. ( JAMA . 1990;263:1353-1354)
187 citations
"How Accurate Are References in Clin..." refers background in this paper
...It should also ensure that the cited article is accurately quoted, although this is not always the case (1, 3, 4)....
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TL;DR: Some suggestions for reducing high levels of inaccuracy are that papers scheduled for publication with errors of citation should be returned to the author and checked completely and a permanent column specifically for misquotations could be inserted into the journal.
Abstract: The accuracy of quotations and references in six medical journals published during January 1984 was assessed. The original author was misquoted in 15% of all references, and most of the errors would have misled readers. Errors in citation of references occurred in 24%, of which 8% were major errors--that is, they prevented immediate identification of the source of the reference. Inaccurate quotations and citations are displeasing for the original author, misleading for the reader, and mean that untruths become "accepted fact." Some suggestions for reducing these high levels of inaccuracy are that papers scheduled for publication with errors of citation should be returned to the author and checked completely and a permanent column specifically for misquotations could be inserted into the journal.
133 citations
TL;DR: The possibility that the sera from patients with different pathological conditions may contain different … may have different recognition patterns in different immunoassays.
Abstract: Troponin, consisting of three components, troponin C (TnC), troponin I (TnI), and troponin T (TnT), is a major component of the structural proteins involved in striated and cardiac muscle contraction (1)(2). TnI and TnC bind tightly to each other in the presence of Ca2+ with an association constant, K a, of ∼108-109 L/mol (1)(2)(3). TnT binds to both TnC and TnI, although less weakly than the binding between TnC and TnI. The cardiac isoforms of TnI (cTnI) and TnT are structurally different from the corresponding skeletal isoforms, and therefore they have recently established themselves as biochemical markers of myocardial damage (4)(5)(6)(7).
The currently available cTnI assays produce differing results (8)(9)(10). One important reason is that the assays may differ in their responses to the various isoforms of cTnI present in circulation or in biochemical preparations. In addition to “free” cTnI (I) and its binary and ternary complexes with TnC and TnT (IC or ICT) (8)(11)(12), cTnI may exist in phosphorylated (13), oxidized (14), and proteolytically degraded (8)(11)(12) forms. The latter modified forms of cTnI also may exist as binary or ternary complexes. All of these forms may have different recognition patterns in different immunoassays. The predominant form of cTnI in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients is the binary complex IC (8)(11). Samples treated with a Ca2+ chelator such as EDTA would contain mostly free cTnI because chelation of Ca2+ disrupts IC and ICT complexes.
We explored the possibility that the sera from patients with different pathological conditions may contain different …
53 citations
TL;DR: It is clinically important that a minority of hereditaryIron overload syndromes are not associated with mutations in the HFE gene, and absence of such mutations should not be interpreted to mean that the patient in question does not have hereditary iron overload.
Abstract: Hereditary hemochromatosis is a common autosomal recessive disorder of iron metabolism, which in its homozygous form occurs in Caucasian populations with a prevalence of 0.2–0.5% (1)(2). Characteristic of the disease is the excessive accumulation of dietary iron and a progressive rise in iron stores. This may lead to serious clinical consequences, including cirrhosis, cardiac failure, diabetes, arthritis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Treatment involves removal of the iron burden by regular venesection and leads to a normal life expectancy if implemented before the development of cirrhosis (3). Thus, early detection and treatment are critically important. The recent identification of a hemochromatosis gene ( HFE , initially termed HLA-H) by Feder et al. (4) allows early genetic diagnosis and greatly simplifies the screening of a family once affected individuals have been identified. The HFE gene protein product is structurally similar to MHC class I-type molecules and interacts with β2-microglobulin and the transferrin receptor to limit iron absorption (5)(6). Three disease-associated mutations have been detected in the HFE gene. Most individuals with hemochromatosis (80–100%, depending on the population studied) are homozygous for the mutation C282Y. In addition, a small number of compound heterozygotes for C282Y and a second mutation, H63D, may develop clinical iron overload (7). Recently, we demonstrated that a third mutation, S65C, is enriched in hereditary hemochromatosis patients who have a mild form of the disease and who have no mutations at C282 or H63 (8). Although mutations in the HFE gene thus account for most cases of hereditary hemochromatosis, it is clinically important that a minority of hereditary iron overload syndromes are not associated with mutations in the HFE gene. Absence of such mutations thus should not be interpreted to mean that the patient in question does not have hereditary iron overload (1)(2). …
44 citations