What should be measured and reported in clinical trials for the treatment of patients with acute pancreatitis? A study protocol for establishing a core outcome set

IntroductionAcute pancreatitis (AP) is characterised by inflammation of the exocrine pancreas, which potentially leads to local complications and organ failure resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. A long-term follow-up by an experienced team is needed. Currently, a variety of outcome measures are used in clinical trials for patients with AP. However, due to heterogeneous and selective outcome reporting across trials of interventions, it is hard to combine or compare the trial results compromising systematic evaluations of effectiveness and safety. A core outcome set is demanded to standardise reporting for the management of AP in clinical trials, so as to conduct systematic reviews and to improve the quality of the existing evidence base on the management of AP. We designed a study to establish a core outcome set (COS) on what indicators should be measured and reported in clinical trials of patients with AP (COS-AP).Methods and analysisThis study protocol outlines the following five phases: Phase I will be a systematic review of randomised control trials and semistructured interviews with patients to initially establish a preliminary list of potential outcomes. Phase II will be the recruitment of key stakeholders' groups comprising experts in pancreatic disease, clinical researchers, methodologists, journal editors and patients. Phase III will be two rounds of the Delphi surveys with key stakeholder groups. Phase IV will be a consensus on the outcomes that should be included in a final COS-AP. Phase V will be dissemination of COS-AP.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval for this study was obtained from the Biomedical Research Ethics Committee (BREC) of West China Hospital of Sichuan University (2020 No.691). The findings will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journals and meetings.Trial registrationThis study was registered with Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials (COMET) database as study 2573.