The Real-World Global Use of Patient-Reported Outcomes for the Care of Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Background Many patient-reported outcomes (PROs) have been developed for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) without recommendations for clinical use. PROs differ from physician-reported disease activity indices; they assess patients' perceptions of their symptoms, functional status, mental health, and quality of life, among other areas. We sought to investigate the current global use and barriers to using PROs in clinical practice for IBD. Methods A cross-sectional survey was performed. An electronic questionnaire was sent to an international group of providers who care for patients with IBD. Results There were 194 respondents, including adult/pediatric gastroenterologists, advanced practice providers, and colorectal surgeons from 5 continents. The majority (80%) use PROs in clinical practice, 65% frequently found value in routine use, and 50% frequently found PROs influenced management. Thirty-one different PROs for IBD were reportedly used. Barriers included not being familiar with PROs, not knowing how to incorporate PRO results into clinical practice, lack of electronic medical record integration, and time constraints. Most (91%) agreed it would be beneficial to have an accepted set of consistently used PROs. The majority (60%) thought that there should be some cultural differences in PROs used globally but that PROs for IBD should be consistent around the world. Conclusions PROs are used frequently in clinical practice with wide variation in which are used and how they influence management. Education about PROs and how to use and interpret an accepted set of PROs would decrease barriers for use and allow for global harmonization. Lay Summary Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) are standardized tools that generate numeric values representing patient perceptions of symptoms, functional status, mental health, and quality of life. In inflammatory bowel disease, it is necessary to identify practical PROs that represent what is most important to patients.