BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to quantify and assess the types of research and review articles published in physiotherapy professional journals with international circulations. METHOD: Selected articles from nine physiotherapy journals in a period of five years were classified according to their study design. RESULTS: A total number of 1627 articles were included in this study of which 205 (12.60%) were randomized controlled trial (RCT). Articles published with the highest frequency were 'observational/descriptive studies' (n = 305, 18.75%), whereas 'meta-analyses' were the rarest ones (n = 21, 1.29%). Many articles were validation studies (n = 216, 13.28%) and articles classified as 'others' (n = 217, 13.34%). High heterogeneity was found in terms of distribution over years and journals with an improvement of the number of RCTs among years. CONCLUSION: The distribution of different types of article in physiotherapy journals is similar to other disciplines. The improvement of RCTs represents an important move in the right direction for evidence-based physiotherapy research.
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to quantify and assess the types of research and review articles published in physiotherapy professional journals with international circulations. METHOD: Selected articles from nine physiotherapy journals in a period of five years were classified according to their study design. RESULTS: A total number of 1627 articles were included in this study of which 205 (12.60%) were randomized controlled trial (RCT). Articles published with the highest frequency were 'observational/descriptive studies' (n = 305, 18.75%), whereas 'meta-analyses' were the rarest ones (n = 21, 1.29%). Many articles were validation studies (n = 216, 13.28%) and articles classified as 'others' (n = 217, 13.34%). High heterogeneity was found in terms of distribution over years and journals with an improvement of the number of RCTs among years. CONCLUSION: The distribution of different types of article in physiotherapy journals is similar to other disciplines. The improvement of RCTs represents an important move in the right direction for evidence-based physiotherapy research.
Authors: Bruno T Saragiotto; Lucíola C M Costa; Ronaldo F Oliveira; Alexandre D Lopes; Anne M Moseley; Leonardo O P Costa Journal: Braz J Phys Ther Date: 2014-02-11 Impact factor: 3.377