QUOROM flow charts in medical publications

A number of medical

Medicine

Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....

 and life science

Life sciences

The life sciences comprise the fields of science that involve the scientific study of living organisms, like plants, animals, and human beings. While biology remains the centerpiece of the life sciences, technological advances in molecular biology and biotechnology have led to a burgeoning of...

 journals

Scientific journal

In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. There are thousands of scientific journals in publication, and many more have been published at various points in the past...

 require authors submitting papers on reviews, meta-analyses

Meta-analysis

In statistics, a meta-analysis combines the results of several studies that address a set of related research hypotheses. In its simplest form, this is normally by identification of a common measure of effect size, for which a weighted average might be the output of a meta-analyses. Here the...

 and systematic reviews

Systematic review

A systematic review is a literature review focused on a research question that tries to identify, appraise, select and synthesize all high quality research evidence relevant to that question. Systematic reviews of high-quality randomized controlled trials are crucial to evidence-based medicine...

 to include a QUOROM flow chart. QUOROM is the acronym used for the Quality of Reporting of Meta-analyses standards developed by QUOROM group. This is a flow chart that graphically describes the sequence of steps defined for exclusion of studies under review. The rationale behind the inclusion of such a diagram is to increase the transparency of decisions made by the researcher for including or excluding certain studies, which may subsequently introduce biases

Bias

Bias is an inclination to present or hold a partial perspective at the expense of alternatives. Bias can come in many forms.-In judgement and decision making:...

 in the overall measure of effect.

The inclusion of a QUOROM flow chart is usually required in addition to adherence to quality guidelines known as the QUOROM statement, which describes a methodology for the consistent reporting of meta-analyses of randomised control trials

Randomized controlled trial

A randomized controlled trial is a type of scientific experiment - a form of clinical trial - most commonly used in testing the safety and efficacy or effectiveness of healthcare services or health technologies A randomized controlled trial (RCT) is a type of scientific experiment - a form of...

(RCTs).