The STARD reporting checklist

Note

If you have not used a reporting guideline before, read about how and why to use them and check whether STARD is the most applicable reporting guideline for your work.

Reporting guidelines are most useful when used early in research. When writing a manuscript or application, consider using the Full Guidance where you’ll see explanations and examples for each item.

After writing, demonstrate adherence by completing this checklist:

1. Specify where each item is described (see Note 1).
2. Cite this checklist (See Note 2).
3. Include your completed checklist as a supplement when submitting to a journal so that future readers can use it to find information.

	Item Description	Location (or reason for not reporting)
Title or abstract
1. Identification as a study of diagnostic accuracy	Identification as a study of diagnostic accuracy using at least one measure of accuracy (such as sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, or AUC).
Abstract
2. Abstract	Structured summary of study design, methods, results and conclusions (for specific guidance, see STARD for Abstracts).
Introduction
3. Background	Scientific and clinical background, including the intended use and clinical role of the index test.
4. Objectives	Study objectives and hypotheses.
Methods
5. Study design	Whether data collection was planned before the index test and reference standard were performed (prospective study) or after (retrospective study).
Participants
6. Eligibility criteria	Eligibility criteria.
7. Identifying eligible participants	On what basis potentially eligible participants were identified (such as symptoms, results from previous tests, inclusion in registry).
8. Setting, location, and dates	Where and when potentially eligible participants were identified (setting, location and dates).
9. Consecutive, random or convenience series	Whether participants formed a consecutive, random or convenience series.
Test Methods
10. Index test & Reference standard	10a. Index test 10b. Reference standard
11. Reference standard rationale	Rationale for choosing the reference standard (if alternatives exist).
12. Index test and reference standard cut-offs or categories	12a. Definition of and rationale for test positivity cut-offs or result categories of the index test, distinguishing prespecified from exploratory. 12b. Definition of and rationale for test positivity cut-offs or result categories of the reference standard, distinguishing prespecified from exploratory.
13. Information available to performers or readers of the index test and reference standard assessors	13a. Whether clinical information and reference standard results were available to the performers or readers of the index test. 13b. Whether clinical information and index test results were available to the assessors of the reference standard.
Analysis
14. Analysis methods	Methods for estimating or comparing measures of diagnostic accuracy.
15. Indeterminate results	How indeterminate index test or reference standard results were handled.
16. Missing data	How missing data on the index test and reference standard were handled.
17. Variability	Any analyses of variability in diagnostic accuracy, distinguishing prespecified from exploratory.
18. Intended sample size	Intended sample size and how it was determined.
Results
Participants
19. Participant flow diagram	Flow of participants, using a diagram.
20. Baseline characteristics	Baseline demographic and clinical characteristics of participants.
21a. Participants with and without the target condition	21a. Distribution of severity of disease in those with the target condition. 21b. Distribution of alternative diagnoses in those without the target condition
22. Time interval	Time interval and any clinical interventions between index test and reference standard.
Test Results
23. Index test and reference standard results	Cross tabulation of the index test results (or their distribution) by the results of the reference standard.
24. Estimates of accuracy	Estimates of diagnostic accuracy and their precision (such as 95% CIs).
25. Adverse events	Any adverse events from performing the index test or the reference standard.
Discussion
26. Limitations	Study limitations, including sources of potential bias, statistical uncertainty and generalisability.
27. Implications for Practice	Implications for practice, including the intended use and clinical role of the index test.
Other information
28. Registration	Registration number and name of registry.
29. Protocol	Where the full study protocol can be accessed.
30. Funding	Sources of funding and other support; role of funders.

1 How to specify where content is

Tell the reader where they can find information. E.g.,

• Results; paragraph 2
• Methods, Participants; paragraphs 1 & 2.
• Table 3
• Supplement B, para. 4

If you have chosen not to describe an item, explain why. You can do this in the checklist, or as a note below it.

You can describe items in the article body, or in tables, figures, or supplementary materials, and should prioritize items you feel are most important to your intended audience. The order of items in your manuscript does not need to match the order of items in this checklist. You can decide how best to structure your work.

2 How to cite

Describe how you used STARD at the end of your Methods section, referencing the resources you used e.g.,

‘We used the STARD reporting guideline(1) to draft this manuscript, and the STARD reporting checklist(2) when editing, included in supplement A’

If you use a reporting checklist, remember to include it as a supplement when publishing so that readers can easily find information and see how you have interpreted the guidance.

References

1.

Bossuyt PM, Reitsma JB, Bruns DE, Gatsonis CA, Glasziou PP, Irwig L, et al. STARD 2015: An updated list of essential items for reporting diagnostic accuracy studies. BMJ [Internet]. 2015 Oct;351:h5527. Available from: https://www.bmj.com/content/351/bmj.h5527

2.

Bossuyt PM, Reitsma JB, Bruns DE, Gatsonis CA, Glasziou PP, Irwig L, et al. The STARD reporting checklist. In: Harwood J, Albury C, Beyer J de, Schlüssel M, Collins G, editors. The EQUATOR network reporting guideline platform [Internet]. The UK EQUATOR Centre; 2025. Available from: https:/resources.equator-network.org/reporting-guidelines/stard/stard-checklist.docx