TABLE 1.
Frequency that different outcome measures were reported in 123 RCTs and 38 SRs conducted during the past decade
| Outcomes | Frequency of reporting | |
| RCTs | SRs | |
| Patient important outcomes | ||
| Mortality | 101 (82%) | 29 (76%) |
| Treatment success or failure | 77 (63%) | 29 (76%) |
| Adverse effects | 73 (59%) | 26 (68%) |
| Health status, symptoms & quality of life | 73 (59%) | 17 (45%) |
| Duration of exacerbations | 42 (34%) | 20 (53%) |
| Re-exacerbation, re-hospitalisation | 33 (27%) | 16 (42%) |
| Exercise capacity | 14 (11%) | 1 (3%) |
| Anxiety and depression | 6 (5%) | 1 (3%) |
| Surrogate, physiological and laboratory outcomes | ||
| Lung function | 58 (47%) | 18 (47%) |
| Arterial blood gases and oxygen saturation | 40 (33%) | 5 (13%) |
| Microbiological response | 16 (13%) | 7 (18%) |
| Biomarkers | 32 (26%) | 2 (5%) |
| Medication use | 18 (15%) | 3 (8%) |
Data are presented as n (%). RCT: randomised control trial; SR: systematic review. Reproduced from [17].