Focusing on research quality is a crucial aspect of modern evidence-based medical practice, providing substantial evidence to underpin clinical decision-making. The increase in real-world studies in recent years has presented challenges, with varying quality stemming from issues such as data integrity and researchers’ expertise levels. Although systematic reviews and meta-analyses are essential references for clinical decisions, their reliability is contingent upon the quality of the primary studies. Making clinical decisions based on inadequate research poses inherent risks. With the lack of a specialized tool for evaluating the quality of real-world studies within systematic reviews and meta-analyses, the Gebrye team has introduced a new assessment tool - QATSM-RWS. Comprising 5 modules and 14 items, this tool aims to improve real-world research evaluation. This article aims to elaborate on the tool’s development process and content, using this tool to evaluate a published real-world study as an example and providing valuable guidance for domestic researchers utilizing this innovative tool.
Clarifying the burden of disease is of great significance for determining the focus of healthcare and optimizing the allocation of medical resources. However, differences in research methods and assumptions often affect the comparability of different research results, thus leading to difficulties in healthcare decision-making. Disability-adjusted life year (DALY) is the most commonly used indicator to measure the burden of disease, but the reporting quality of disease burden studies using the DALY metric is uneven. To standardize the reporting of such studies, international scholars developed and recently published the STROBOD statement in Population Health Metrics. Its checklist includes seven parts: title, abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, and open science, involving a total of 28 items. To assist domestic scholars in better understanding and applying this reporting standard, this article interprets each item with published examples, aiming to improve the overall quality of disease burden research and provide high-quality evidence for public health decision-making.
