question: BACKGROUND: Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) in research positively affects the relevance, quality, and impact of research. Around 11% of studies published in leading medical journals demonstrate PPIE. The extent of PPIE in nursing research has not been previously studied. METHODS: A descriptive study of PPIE in clinical trials published in general nursing science journals between 1st January and 31st August 2021. Data were extracted from included studies against the five items of the Guidance for Reporting Involvement of Patients and the Public (GRIPP2) short form reporting checklist. RESULTS: We searched 27 journals and identified 89 randomised controlled clinical trials. There was no statement or evidence of PPIE in any of the included trials. CONCLUSION: Nurse researchers need to ensure that they purposefully involve patients in their research and report this in papers describing study findings. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40900-021-00331-9.