Statistical methods used in Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal articles and relation with acceptance period: A review from 2014-2021

Statistical methods as a complement to biomedical research have a major role to play in the design, management, analysis, andinterpretation of scientific data. The present study aimed to determine the statistical methods, time-to-acceptance, and the associated factors in articlespublished in the Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal (IRCMJ).

Original articles in the period 2014 to 2021 from volumes 16 to 23 and issues 1 to 12 were assessed(1,300 articles). Each article was assessed by a two-member team consisting of a statistician and an expert researcher in the field of medical research. Statistical methods, sample size, sampling method, statistical population, study design, and software were extracted. Frequency, Percentage, Median, Interquartile range, Multiple response analysis (MRA), Kruskal–Wallis test, and Spearman correlation coefficient were used for data description and analysis, respectively. All analyzes were performed in SPSS software (version 26) at a significance level of 5%.

The statistical population of most published articles was related to patients (n=547; 41.2%).Most studies (n=565; 43.5%) had a sample size between 100 and 500 people. The majority of them were analytical interventions (n=535; 41.2%).The median (IQR) of the acceptance period was 94(58-153.75)days.The results of MRA demonstrated that both among the total tests and the articles, the highest rate of statistical methods was related to the T-test, Chi-square test, and descriptive statistics. There was no statistically significant factor influencing the acceptance period (P>0.05), and no significantcorrelation was detected between the acceptance period and the sample size of published articles (r=-0.04;P=0.625).

The acceptance period is a key factor academicresearchersshould consider whenselectingan academicjournalfor theirresearchpaper. Contrary to some novice researchers' beliefs, the acceptance period of the article was not affected by the design, statistical methods, and sample size of the study.