SearCh for humourIstic and Extravagant acroNyms and Thoroughly Inappropriate names For Important Clinical trials (SCIENTIFIC): qualitative and quantitative systematic study

• Published in: BMJ (Online) 2014-12, Vol.349 (dec16 13), p.g7092-g7092
• Main Authors: Pottegård, Anton, Haastrup, Maija Bruun, Stage, Tore Bjerregaard, Hansen, Morten Rix, Larsen, Kasper Søltoft, Meegaard, Peter Martin, Meegaard, Line Haugaard Vrdlovec, Horneberg, Henrik, Gils, Charlotte, Dideriksen, Dorthe, Aagaard, Lise, Almarsdottir, Anna Birna, Hallas, Jesper, Damkier, Per
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abbreviations as Topic; Cardiology; Cheating; CHRISTMAS 2014: FOUND IN TRANSLATION; Clinical trials; Clinical Trials as Topic; Diabetes; Endocrinology; Health sciences; Humans; Impact factors; Names; Periodicals as Topic; PubMed; Pulmonology; Rheumatology; Terminology as Topic; Unified Medical Language System; Variance analysis
• ISSN: 0959-8138; 1756-1833; 1756-1833
• DOI: 10.1136/bmj.g7092

Objectives To describe the development of acronym use across five major medical specialties and to evaluate the technical and aesthetic quality of the acronyms.Design Acronyms obtained through a literature search of Pubmed.gov followed by a standardised assessment of acronym quality (BEAUTY and CHEATING criteria).Participants Randomised controlled trials within psychiatry, rheumatology, pulmonary medicine, endocrinology, and cardiology published between 2000 and 2012.Main outcome measures Prevalence proportion of acronyms and composite quality score for acronyms over time.Results 14 965 publications were identified, of which 18.3% (n=2737) contained an acronym in the title. Acronym use was more common among cardiological studies than among the other four medical specialties (40% v 8-15% in 2012, P