Introduction: Facial palsy (FP) significantly affects the quality of life of patients and poses a treatment challenge in primary healthcare settings. This study aimed to develop a Korean medicine (KM) core outcome set (COS) for FP, with a focus on evaluating the effectiveness of herbal medicine (HM) treatments in KM primary clinics.
Methods: Outcomes and effect modifiers related to FP treatments were initially identified through related review articles. Subsequently, experts in the field took part in three rounds of modified Delphi consensus exercises to refine and prioritize these outcomes and effect modifiers. Additionally, primary KM clinicians were involved in a Delphi consensus round to assess the suitability and feasibility of the proposed COS in real-world clinical settings.
Results: The initial review of related literature identified 44 relevant studies, resulting in an initial selection of 23 outcomes and 10 effect modifiers. The expert consensus process refined these to 8 key outcomes and 6 effect modifiers, which established the foundation of the COS-FP-KM. Subsequently, primary KM clinicians confirmed the practicality and applicability of the COS, endorsing its suitability for use in KM primary clinics.
Conclusion: The COS-FP-KM establishes a standardized approach for assessing HM treatment effectiveness in FP patients in KM primary clinics. The COS-FP-KM encourages consistent outcome reporting and enhances patient care quality. Future work should aim to integrate broader stakeholder perspectives to refine and validate the COS further.
This study aimed to develop a Korean medicine (KM) core outcome set (COS) for FP, with a focus on evaluating the effectiveness of herbal medicine (HM) treatments in KM primary clinics.
ContributorsSoo-Dam Kim, Sungha Kim, Mi Ju Son, Jiyun Cha, Pyung-Wha Kim, Mi Mi Ko, Soobin Jang, Changsop Yang and Myeong Soo Lee
Disease Category: Neurology
Disease Name: Facial palsy
Age Range: Unknown
Sex: Either
Nature of Intervention: Other
- Clinical experts
- Researchers
- COS for clinical trials or clinical research
- Delphi process
- Literature review
This development involved three distinct phases, consistent with the methods used in previous studies. Initially, we formed a Project Management Group (PMG) responsible for
overseeing the development process. This group undertook the task of generating and refining an initial list of outcomes through an extensive literature review. The second phase involved a modified Delphi consensus process conducted by experts in the field. Following
this, primary clinicians participated in a similar modified Delphi process during the third phase.