Contributions
Abstract: 255
Type: LB Oral
Abstract Category: Late Breaking News
Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a complex disease of the CNS. As new drugs are becoming available, knowledge on diagnosis and treatment must continuously evolve. There is therefore an urgent need for a reference tool compiling current data on benefit and safety, to aid professionals in treatment decisions and use of resources across Europe. ECTRIMS and EAN have joined forces to meet this need.
Objectives: To develop an evidence-based clinical practice guideline (GL) for the pharmacological treatment of people with MS to guide healthcare professionals in the decision making process.
Methods: This GL is developed using the GRADE methodology and follows the recently updated EAN recommendations for GL development which requires a multidisciplinary working group consisting of MS experts, patient representatives and methodologists. Clinical questions are formulated in PICO format (Patient, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome). Outcomes are prioritized according to their relevance to clinical practice. A systematic literature search is conducted for each question and the quality of evidence rated into four categories - very high, high, low and very low. The recommendations with assigned strength (strong, weak) are formulated based on the quality of evidence and the risk-benefit balance.
Results: Thirteen questions have been agreed, encompassing treatment efficacy, response criteria, strategies to address suboptimal response and safety concerns, and pregnancy in the context of treatment. For each question, the outcome prioritization process has been performed via a two-round consensus exercise. Only outcomes graded as very relevant or relevant according to expert opinion, are being analysed. At this point, the literature search has been finalized and the evidence analysis is being completed.
Conclusions: The guideline, including detailed descriptions of the up-to-date evidence together with recommendations and algorithms will be presented and will enable homogeneity of treatment decisions across Europe.
Disclosure: Pending
Abstract: 255
Type: LB Oral
Abstract Category: Late Breaking News
Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a complex disease of the CNS. As new drugs are becoming available, knowledge on diagnosis and treatment must continuously evolve. There is therefore an urgent need for a reference tool compiling current data on benefit and safety, to aid professionals in treatment decisions and use of resources across Europe. ECTRIMS and EAN have joined forces to meet this need.
Objectives: To develop an evidence-based clinical practice guideline (GL) for the pharmacological treatment of people with MS to guide healthcare professionals in the decision making process.
Methods: This GL is developed using the GRADE methodology and follows the recently updated EAN recommendations for GL development which requires a multidisciplinary working group consisting of MS experts, patient representatives and methodologists. Clinical questions are formulated in PICO format (Patient, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome). Outcomes are prioritized according to their relevance to clinical practice. A systematic literature search is conducted for each question and the quality of evidence rated into four categories - very high, high, low and very low. The recommendations with assigned strength (strong, weak) are formulated based on the quality of evidence and the risk-benefit balance.
Results: Thirteen questions have been agreed, encompassing treatment efficacy, response criteria, strategies to address suboptimal response and safety concerns, and pregnancy in the context of treatment. For each question, the outcome prioritization process has been performed via a two-round consensus exercise. Only outcomes graded as very relevant or relevant according to expert opinion, are being analysed. At this point, the literature search has been finalized and the evidence analysis is being completed.
Conclusions: The guideline, including detailed descriptions of the up-to-date evidence together with recommendations and algorithms will be presented and will enable homogeneity of treatment decisions across Europe.
Disclosure: Pending