Updated STROCSS Guidelines: Enhancing Surgery Study Reporting with AI-Focused Criteria

What is it about?

This article discusses the update of the STROCSS guidelines to STROCSS 2025, introducing a new domain focused on artificial intelligence (AI) in surgical observational studies. The update was developed through a Delphi consensus exercise involving 49 experts, achieving a 94% response rate in the first round and consensus on six AI-related items. The revised guidelines aim to enhance transparency, reproducibility, and ethical integrity by requiring authors to disclose AI involvement in patient care and manuscript preparation. The new AI-focused domain includes specific reporting criteria, ensuring AI use is clearly documented, explained, and discussed, particularly concerning bias and ethics. This update aligns with broader efforts to improve AI reporting in medical research, reinforcing transparency and reproducibility. Ultimately, STROCSS 2025 is designed to maintain the quality and educational value of surgical observational studies, benefiting the surgical community.

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Why is it important?

This research examines the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into surgical observational studies and updates the STROCSS guidelines to enhance reporting in the AI era. The significance of this work lies in addressing the growing role of AI in healthcare, ensuring that such technologies are documented and reported with transparency and ethical integrity. By updating the STROCSS guidelines, the study aims to maintain the quality, educational value, and trustworthiness of surgical observational studies, thereby benefiting the surgical community and improving patient care. Key Takeaways: 1. The study introduces a new AI-focused domain within the STROCSS 2025 guideline, emphasizing the need for transparency, reproducibility, and ethical considerations in surgical observational studies involving AI. 2. A Delphi consensus exercise was conducted with a panel of 49 experts to update the guidelines, resulting in consensus on six AI-related items, which enhance the checklist's scope to include AI tools in clinical narratives. 3. The updated guidelines require authors to disclose AI involvement in patient care and manuscript preparation, promoting clarity and reliability in reporting, which aligns with broader efforts to improve AI reporting in medical research.