General characteristics of the included studies
| Medical writing support (n=110) | No medical writing support (n=123) | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of journals that articles were published in | 44 | 57 |
| Number of authors, median (IQR) | 7 (5–9) | 6 (4–8) |
| Articles published on behalf of a study group | 12 (10.9%) | 4 (3.3%) |
| Number of patients randomised to study, median (IQR) | 159 (65.75–407.75) | 43 (21–82) |
| Year of publication | ||
| 2001–2004 | 0 | 17 (13.8%) |
| 2005–2007 | 12 (10.9%) | 25 (20.3%) |
| 2008–2010 | 31 (28.2%) | 34 (27.6%) |
| 2011–2014 | 67 (60.9%) | 47 (38.2%) |
| Funding source | ||
| Industry | 108 (98.2%) | 39 (31.7%) |
| Part-industry | 2 (1.8%) | 23 (18.7%) |
| Non-industry | 0 | 61 (49.6%) |