Development of minimum reporting sets of patient characteristics in epidemiological research: a methodological systematic review

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundCore patient characteristic sets (CPCS) are increasingly developed to identify variables that should be reported to describe the target population of epidemiological studies in the same medical area, while keeping the additional burden on the data collection acceptable.MethodsWe conduct a systematic review of primary studies/ protocols published aiming to develop CPCS, using the PubMed database. We particularly focus on the study design and the characteristics of the proposed CPCS. Quality of Delphi studies was assessed by a tool prosposed in the literatue. All results are reported descriptively.ResultsAmong 23 eligible studies, Delphi survey is the most frequently used technique to obtain consensus in CPCS development (69.6%, n=16). Most studies do not include patients as stakeholders. The final CPCS rarely include socioeconomic factors. 60.9% (n=14) and 31.6% (n=6) of studies provide definition and recommend measurement methods for items, respectively.ConclusionThis study identified a considerable variation and suboptimality in many methodological aspects of CPCS studies. To enhance the credibility and adoption of CPCS, a standard for conducting and reporting CPCS studies is warranted.FundingNo funds, grants, or other support were received during the preparation of this manuscript.RegistrationThis review was not pre-registered.