A systematic review finds Core Outcome Set uptake varies widely across different areas of health

Abstract

The aim of our review was to bring together studies that had assessed the uptake of core outcome sets (COS) to explore the level of uptake across different COS and areas of health. Study Design and Setting: We examined the citations of 337 COS reports to identify studies that had assessed the uptake of a particular COS in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or systematic reviews (SRs). Results: We identified 24 studies that had assessed uptake in RCTs and two studies that had assessed uptake in SRs. The studies covered a total of 17/337 (5%) COS. Uptake rates reported for RCTs varied from 0% of RCTs (gout) to 82% RCTs (rheumatoid arthritis) measuring the full COS. Studies that assessed uptake of individual core outcomes showed a wide variation in uptake between the outcomes. Suggested barriers to uptake included lack of validated measures, lack of patient and other key stakeholder involvement in COS development, and lack of awareness of the COS. Conclusions: Few studies have been undertaken to assess the uptake of COS in RCTs and SRs. Further studies are needed to assess whether COS have been implemented across a wider range of disease categories and to explore the barriers and facilitators to COS uptake.

Core outcome set implementation supported by the BJD

“…However, the clinical trials editorial team have, at times, observed either partial or absent COS utilization and reporting in submitted clinical trial manuscripts, despite the existence of a published COS in that field. This observation is supported by the findings of a recent systematic review examining COS uptake, which demonstrated high variability, ranging from zero uptake in trials for gout to 82% for rheumatoid arthritis, with uptake of a full COS typically found in fewer than 25% of trials 6 …”

The clinical characterization of the adult patient with an anxiety or related disorder aimed at personalization of management

“…Third, the use of a range of metrics may impede communication between clinicians and consumers, making shared decision-making more difficult. The review here is consonant with calls in the field to develop common metrics 264 , to agree on core outcome sets 265,266 , and to harmonize measurement results 263 .…”

A Survey of Knowledge, Perceptions and Use of Core Outcome Sets among Clinical Trialists

“…One area in which COS uptake has been well examined to date is rheumatoid arthritis, with uptake of rheumatoid arthritis COS within clinical trials increasing over time 12,22 . Across other areas of health and healthcare research, COS uptake in trials is unclear 23 . Use of COS, or not, may be attributable to trialists' perceptions of the relevance and scope of a particular COS for use in a trial 24 .…”