Check for Corrections and Retractions Before Citing a Study
Before citing a study, check whether its publisher has issued a correction, expression of concern, retraction, or replacement version. A saved PDF may not show a later change.
The worked examples are teaching aids. Check them against your own source material and the requirements of your specific task.
Start with the task
ICMJE's version-control guidance explains how corrections and revised versions should be linked.
Start from the article's current record
Open the publisher's page using the article identifier or verified title. Check linked notices and the current version. A bibliographic database may also link a notice, but absence of a visible warning in one place is not a guarantee.
Record the date you checked and the exact notice, if any. Do not label a paper retracted merely because someone criticised it online.
Inspect what changed
A correction to an author's affiliation differs from a correction to the result your rationale uses. Read the notice and trace the change to the relevant table, estimate, or conclusion.
For an invented assignment, a corrected denominator could alter an event percentage. The task is to update the evidence note and every claim that depended on that number, not merely add “corrected” to the reference list.
If the paper was retracted, do not rely on it as ordinary valid evidence. It may still be discussed as a retracted work when that status is central to the assignment.
Keep the chain current
Use the appropriate current version under your citation style and course requirements. Preserve enough information to explain which version you read. If a notice leaves the key claim uncertain, retain that uncertainty and seek an alternative source where appropriate.
The evidence-source guide covers source selection more broadly. In Nursevi, review the rationale as well as the citation whenever publication status changes.