Consensus-based guidelines for research in bracing in idiopathic scoliosis by the SRS comprehensive care committee in collaboration with SOSORT.

Abstract

Purpose: Significant variability exists in the current literature of bracing research and outcome reporting, highlighting the need to standardize study design and reporting practices to ensure cross-study consistency and comparability. The purpose of this study is to develop updated consensus-based recommendations for designing, reporting, and publishing bracing research in pediatric patients with idiopathic scoliosis.

Methods: An anonymous Delphi process and a final in-person meeting using the nominal group technique (NGT) established consensus-based guidelines among a multidisciplinary group of bracing experts. Three consecutive, anonymous Delphi rounds were administered to 30 multidisciplinary bracing experts invited to participate in this study. An 80% agreement threshold was set throughout the survey process and final in-person meeting. Items that did not reach consensus were refined to incorporate feedback and redistributed in subsequent rounds to improve consensus. Items that met consensus across all the rounds were simplified to remove redundant items to develop the final list of guidelines.

Results: Of the 30 experts invited to participate, response rates were 24 (80%), 25 (83%), and 23 (77%) across survey rounds and 22 participants in the final, in-person meeting. Expert consensus was reached on 121 items across 6 domains which were refined and consolidated into a final 28-item summary of consensus-based guidelines for research in bracing idiopathic scoliosis (Fig. 1).

Conclusion: Detailed, consensus-based research guidelines for bracing treatment in patients with idiopathic scoliosis were successfully developed. It must be acknowledged that these best practice guidelines are for research purposes only and are not clinical recommendations.