TIDieR aphasia: improving transparency and replicability in aphasia treatment research

Background Reporting of aphasia treatment studies has improved substantially over the past decade, including increased consensus on specific outcome measures and stronger recommendations for replication and reporting. These advances support improved data synthesis, allowing researchers to provide clearer clinical recommendations. However, treatment descriptions still lack sufficient detail to permit true replication. The Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist was developed to improve reporting of health interventions, but it does not require the level of detail needed for a heterogenous population such as people with aphasia.Aims The Collaboration of Aphasia Trialists sought to adapt the TIDieR checklist to better address the specific needs of aphasia intervention research and promote more complete, replicable reporting.Methods & Procedures The project team created a proposed adapted checklist. Following this, a two-round modified Delphi consensus process was conducted with international experts. Email invitations were sent to various professional organisations, and secure surveys were used to collect data from those who chose to participate. Round 1 included aphasia researchers and Round 2 included both researchers and clinicians.Outcomes & Results Six participants completed Round 1; 19 completed Round 2. After incorporating feedback, several changes were agreed upon, and an adapted checklist was developed. Aphasia-specific examples were included for each item and provided a range of study designs such as randomized control trials and case series.Conclusions TIDieR Aphasia provides a comprehensive and accessible reporting tool for aphasia intervention studies. Adoption as a supplementary manuscript material may improve reporting quality, facilitate replication, and enhance implementation of aphasia treatments into clinical practice.