Evaluating reporting of patient-reported outcomes in peptic ulcer disease: a meta-epidemiological study of randomized controlled trials

Objectives: Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) can significantly affect quality of life (QoL). These QoL outcomes are often patient-reported, and their inclusion in clinical trials supplements efficacy outcomes to provide the patients' perspective. This assese existing literature for completeness of PRO reporting across randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating PUD.

Methods: This meta-epidemiological, cross-sectional study that assessed completeness of reporting among RCTs addressing management of PUD. We conducted a comprehensive literature search] to identify RCTs with a PRO as a primary or secondary outcome. These RCTs were assessed for completion of reporting according to the PRO adaptation of CONSORT checklist. RCTs were also assessed for Risk of Bias (RoB) using the Cochrane RoB 2.0 tool.

Results: Masked, duplicate screening of 829 results = yielded a final sample of 35 RCTs. The average completeness of reporting was 32.9% according to the CONSORT-PRO adaptation. Twenty-one (of 35; 60%) of the RCTs were assessed as having 'high' risk of bias and nine (of 35; 25.71%) were assessed as having 'some concerns' for risk of bias. Bivariate regression found completeness of reporting to be positively associated with increased PRO follow-up duration, sample size, and studies with conflicts of interest.

Conclusion: RCTs examining the treatment and prevention of PUD with PROs as an outcome measure have deficient reporting and 'high' risk of bias according to the CONSORT-PRO and Cochrane RoB guidelines.