Reporting experiments in homeopathic basic research (REHBaR) – A detailed guideline for authors
B Stock-Schro¨er, H Albrecht, L Betti, PC Endler, K Linde, R Lu¨dtke, F Musial, R van Wijk, C Witt and S Baumgartner
Background: Reporting experiments in basic research in homeopathy is an important
issue as comprehensive description of what exactly was done is required. So far, there
is no guideline for authors available, unlike criteria catalogues common in clinical
research.
Methods: A Delphi Process was conducted, including a total of five rounds, three rounds
of adjusting and phrasing plus two consensus conferences. European researchers who
published experimental work within the last five years were involved.
Results: A checklist of 23 items was obtained and supplemented with detailed examples
emphasizing what each item implies. Background, objectives and possible hypotheses
should be given in the part ‘introduction’. Special emphasis is put on the ‘materials
and methods’ section, where a detailed description of chosen controls, object of investigation,
experimental setup, replication, parameters, intervention, allocation, blinding,
and statistical methods is required. The section ‘results’ should present sufficient details
on analysed data, descriptive as well as inferential. Authors should discuss their results
and give an interpretation in the context of current evidence.
Conclusion: A guideline for Reporting Experiments in Homeopathic Basic Research
(REHBaR) was compiled to be applied by authors when preparing their manuscripts,
and to be used by scientific journals in the reviewing process. Furthermore the guideline
is a commitment to a certain minimum quality level needed in basic research, e.g. blinding
and randomisation. Feedback is encouraged on applicability, strength and limitations
of the list to enable future revisions. Homeopathy (2009) 98, 287–298.
Keywords: Fundamental research; Delphi; Guideline; Publication; Criteria catalogue