Commentary: core descriptor sets using consensus methods support 'table one' consistency.

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All Authors

Lee, MJ.
Lamidi, S.
Williams, KM.
Blackwell, S.
Rashid, A.
Coe, PO.
Fearnhead, NS.
Blencowe, NS.
Hind, D.

LTHT Author

Coe, Peter
Blencowe, Natalie

LTHT Department

Abdominal Medicine & Surgery
Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery
Emergency Surgery

Non Medic

Publication Date

2024

Item Type

Journal Article

Language

Subject

Subject Headings

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Inconsistent reporting of patient characteristics in clinical research hampers reproducibility and limits analysis opportunities. This paper proposes condition-specific 'Core Descriptor Sets' comprising key factors like demographics, disease severity, comorbidities, and prognosis to standardize Table 1 reporting. METHODS: Development entails stakeholder involvement, systematic identification of descriptors, value rating, and consensus-building using multiple Delphi rounds. Final agreement comes at an expert meeting. CONCLUSION: Benefits include easier cross-study comparison, for example, through individual patient meta-analysis, facilitated by comparison of consistently reported individual data rather than group-level analysis. This may also support routine data analyses, subgroup and risk identification, and reduced research waste. Core Descriptor Sets describe cohorts thoroughly while minimizing research burden. They are intended to enable improved clinical characterization, personalization, reproducibility, data sharing, and knowledge building.

Journal

Journal of Clinical Epidemiology