Reporting
STROBE
Also called: Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology
STROBE is a reporting guideline for observational studies, covering cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional designs. Its 22-item checklist specifies what such studies should report, including how participants were selected, how variables were measured, and how confounding was addressed, so their strengths and limits can be assessed.
Because observational studies cannot lean on randomization, transparent reporting of design choices is what lets readers gauge their credibility. STROBE asks authors to describe the sampling and eligibility criteria, the sources and methods of measurement, the handling of missing data, and the strategies used to control for confounding, along with the number of participants at each stage.
The guideline does not prescribe how to conduct a study, only how to report it fully, and it complements CONSORT for trials and PRISMA for reviews within the EQUATOR Network. Extensions such as STROBE-MR adapt it for Mendelian randomization and other specialized designs.
For a reviewer, STROBE items map neatly onto the questions that decide whether an observational finding is believable: Was selection bias controlled? Which confounders were measured and adjusted for? Are the results generalized beyond the sampled population? Gaps against the checklist point straight to the study's weak spots.
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