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A Systematic Review of Outcome Measures Employed in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage (aSAH) Clinical Research

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Abstract

Consensus on appropriate outcome measures to use in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) research has not been established, although the transition toward a core outcome set (COS) would provide significant benefits. To inform COS development, we conducted a systematic review to identify outcome measures included in reports of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) of interventions in patients with aSAH. Ovid Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, and CENTRAL were searched. RCTs investigating aSAH published between January 1996 and May 2015 were included. The primary and secondary outcomes of RCTs were recorded and classified according to the OMERACT Consortium’s framework. We identified 1093 potential studies of which 129 met inclusion criteria representing 24 238 patients. There were 285 unique outcome measures. The Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) was the most frequently used primary outcome (13/129, 10.1%). Mortality was reported in 84 trials (65.1%) with 3 months the most common time point (34/129, 26.4%). The GOS (65/129, 50.4%) and the Modified Rankin Scale (51/129, 39.5%) were the most commonly reported functional measures; however, these were reported at different time points and often dichotomized using different ranges. Patient-reported quality of life measures were used in 11 trials (8.5%). Transcranial Doppler was the most frequently used imaging modality (40/129, 31.0%). Definitions and reporting of vasospasm, delayed cerebral ischemia and imaging modality results were highly variable. The marked heterogeneity of outcomes in reports of RCTs supports the development of a core outcome set for aSAH trials. Our study has identified a wide range of outcomes for potential inclusion in a future aSAH COS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Malcolm Fisher Department of Intensive Care Medicine, Royal North Shore Hospital, St Leonards, NSW, 2065, Australia

    Christopher R. Andersen, Emily Fitzgerald, Anthony Delaney & Simon Finfer

  2. Northern Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, St Leonards, NSW, Australia

    Christopher R. Andersen & Anthony Delaney

  3. Division of Critical Care and Trauma, The George Institute for Global Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Christopher R. Andersen & Simon Finfer

  4. Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford Kadoorie Centre, Level 3, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK

    Christopher R. Andersen

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  1. Christopher R. Andersen
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  4. Simon Finfer
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Contributions

Christopher R. Andersen designed the analysis, completed the data extraction, and wrote the manuscript. Emily Fitzgerald completed the data extraction. Simon Finfer and Anthony Delaney advised and assisted in the analysis of the design and revised and assisted in the completion of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Christopher R. Andersen.

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Andersen, C.R., Fitzgerald, E., Delaney, A. et al. A Systematic Review of Outcome Measures Employed in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage (aSAH) Clinical Research. Neurocrit Care 30, 534–541 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-018-0566-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-018-0566-0

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