Perioperative lifestyle and nutritional interventions’ details reporting in bariatric surgery trials according to the TIDieR checklist: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundMetabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) is considered the most effective treatment for people with severe obesity, and certain interventions could enhance its long-term results. The complete reporting of interventions’ details is necessary for their replication in clinical settings. ObjectivesTo investigate the completeness of reporting of lifestyle and nutritional interventions applied in immediate perioperative period (30-days pre- and postoperatively) in patients undergoing MBS using the 12-item Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist, and to explore factors associated with compliant reporting. SettingA cross-sectional study. MethodsWe searched MEDLINE, Embase, and CENTRAL up to 14.04.2024. The screening, extraction, and assessments were performed independently by two authors. ResultsInformation from the manuscript, protocol, and supplementary materials in 72 trials comprising 76 interventions satisfied a mean of the 70.4% (SD 16.5) of TIDieR items. Altogether, 6.6% of the interventions fulfilled all items. The lowest scoring items were adherence to intervention (item 12, reported in 51.3% of the interventions), modes of delivery (item 6, 42.1%), intervention provider (item 5, 38.3%), and fidelity assessment & maintenance planning (item 11, 23.7%). 6.9% of the trials contained relevant information in the protocol or supplementary materials and 93.1% required contacting authors for clarifications. We identified the number of authors, availability of a study protocol, availability of supplementary materials, reporting of the compliance with the CONSORT guidelines, and reporting of a plan for dealing with missing outcome data as predictors of better reporting, while the Asian country of the corresponding author implied less compliant reporting. ConclusionsThe completeness of reporting of lifestyle and nutritional interventions applied in immediate perioperative period in patients undergoing MBS is suboptimal and, consequently, impedes their replication in clinical practice. A wider adoption of the TIDieR checklist by authors, reviewers, and journal editors should enhance the transparency, clarity, and transferability of research.