Table 2.
Results per item after the second round of the DELPHI study (median scores and IQR).
| Factors | Reporting | Controlling | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Items | Median | % positive responses | IQR | Median | % positive responses | IQR |
| Subjects | ||||||
| Age | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0 |
| Sex, gender | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 83% | 0.75 |
| Handedness or footedness | 4 | 78% | 1 | 4 | 61% | 1 |
| Details on the conditions on a participant basis (e.g., specify if affected side was dominant/non dominant previous to the diagnosis) | 5 | 78% | 1 | 5 | 72% | 1.75 |
| Previous experience with rPMS (e.g., participation in previous studies) | 4 | 72% | 0.75 | 4 | 61% | 1.75 |
| Prescribed medication and CNS active drugs | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 83% | 0 |
| Presence/intensity or absence of symptoms related to the health condition (e.g., level of acute pain, level of spasticity, inter-ictal period or migraine) | 5 | 89% | 0 | 5 | 83% | 0.75 |
| Comorbidity (e.g., presence of neurological/psychiatric disorders) | 5 | 94% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0 |
| Exclusion criteria related to rPMS | 5 | 100% | 0 | N/A | N/A | |
| Hormonal/menstrual cycle of female subjects | 3 | 17% | 0.75 | 3 | 17% | 1 |
| Chronic substance intake (e.g., alcohol, drugs, nicotine) | 3 | 50% | 1.75 | 4 | 56% | 2 |
| Substance intake at the day of testing (e.g., alcohol, drugs, nicotine) | 4 | 61% | 2 | 4 | 61% | 2 |
| Habitual physical activity | 3 | 39% | 1 | 3 | 39% | 1 |
| Body Mass Index (BMI) | 3 | 39% | 1 | 3 | 33% | 1 |
| Methodology | ||||||
| Coil location and how optimal placement was defined/reached | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Coil type (size and geometry) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Coil orientation | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Direction of induced current | 5 | 94% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0 |
| Technical specifics of coil (e.g., maximum magnetic field strength, discharge time) | 5 | 94% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0 |
| Type of stimulator used (e.g., brand) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Pulse shape (e.g., monophasic or biphasic) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Pulse duration | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Cooling used for the coil during stimulation | 5 | 89% | 1 | 5 | 78% | 1 |
| Use of navigation, if any (e.g., navigation type) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0.75 |
| Sham procedures, if any | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 100% | 0 |
| Level of expertise and training of rPMS operator | 4 | 61% | 1 | 4 | 78% | 0.75 |
| Number of different operators | 4 | 67% | 2 | 4 | 72% | 1.75 |
| Side effects (e.g., discomfort, pain) | 5 | 89% | 0 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Time of day tested | 4 | 67% | 1.75 | 4 | 61% | 2 |
| Subject attention (level of arousal) during stimulation | 3 | 44% | 1 | 4 | 78% | 1 |
| Condition of muscle activity during rPMS (e.g., stimulation with subject at rest or while performing an isometric activity, or subject performing a task) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Presence of hyperalgesia of muscles treated, before and during rPMS (in case of pain disorders) | 5 | 94% | 0.75 | 5 | 89% | 0.75 |
| Level of relaxation of muscles not stimulated during rPMS | 4 | 61% | 2 | 5 | 61% | 2 |
| Stimulation protocol | ||||||
| Paradigm of stimulation (e.g., continuous, intermittent) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Stimulation frequency | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Stimulation intensity | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Method for choosing the stimulation intensity (e.g., relation to % of max stimulator output, relation to a sensation/contraction threshold) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Duty cycle (duration of ON and OFF periods for intermittent protocols) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Number of pulses in a burst | 5 | 94% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0 |
| Number of bursts in a train | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 89% | 0 |
| Number of trains in one session | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Total number of pulses | 5 | 94% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Total duration of one session | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Total numbers of sessions and time frame (e.g., every second day) | 5 | 100% | 0 | 5 | 94% | 0 |
| Analyses | ||||||
| Number of stimuli required to determine the optimal location (i.e., potential effects of stimuli already administered prior to the onset of treatment) | 4 | 61% | 1 | 4 | 61% | 1.75 |
| Number of stimuli required to determine stimulation intensity (i.e., potential effects of stimuli already administered prior to the onset of treatment) | 4 | 61% | 1 | 4 | 61% | 1.75 |
% positive responses, % responders having scored 4 or 5 on the Likert scale; IQR, interquartile range. Items bolded were scored higher than the cut-off of 75% positive responses.