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- Published on: 8 November 2018
- Published on: 8 November 2018Validity and relevance of outcomes; the importance of core outcome sets
I wish to comment about the outcomes you have selected for your study on gastroschisis and in particular caution against the use of 'primary closure' as an outcome at all. There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, implicit in the use of primary closure as an outcome is a belief that it is either a good or bad thing. The literature would not support that either delayed closure or primary closure is superior, therefore it is impossible to know how to interpret a higher (or lower) rate of primary closure following either Caesarian section or vaginal delivery. Is a higher rate of primary closure good or bad? Secondly, the increasing use by paediatric surgeons of the preformed silo to manage return of the visceral contents to the abdominal cavity means that the closure technique may be prescribed rather than one that is dependent on other factors (such as mode of delivery). Its relevance therefore as an outcome is highly questionable.
I note also that you encountered 'differences in definition of outcomes, choice of outcome measures and variation in reporting methods'. Such difficulties can be a real challenge in the context of a meta-analysis and preclude accurate evidence synthesis. One proposed way to address this challenge is the development and use of a Core Outcome Set. A Core Outcome Set is a set of outcomes that has been derived through consensus methodology across stakeholder groups as being the most important outcomes to measure in re...
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None declared.