Interpretation of patient-reported outcomes

This article provides an update review on two broad approaches – anchor-based and distributed-based – aimed at enhancing the understanding and meaning of patient-reported outcome scores. Anchor-based approaches include percentages based on thresholds, criterion-group interpretation, content-based interpretation, and clinical important difference. Distributed-based approaches include effect size, probability of relative benefit, and responder analysis and cumulative proportions. A third strategy called mediation analysis, which can elucidate a health condition measured by a patient-reported outcome in the context of an intervention’s mechanism of action, is also highlighted and illustrated. Mediation analysis in the context of interpretation of patient-reported outcome scores is a relatively new development. The logic and rationale of the three methods are expressed generally. While the three approaches themselves are not new, some applications of them taken from their examples published in the past few years are original and coalesced in this article to add real-life implications of the different methodologies in one integrated report.
Source: Statistical Methods in Medical Research - Category: Statistics Authors: Tags: Articles Source Type: research