Why Are PROs Important?
The importance of PROs in AF was recently underscored by an
international working group convened by the International Consortium for
Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) in which a standardized set of
outcomes for AF were developed.5 This working group
categorized AF outcomes into three major domains: long-term consequences
of disease, complications of treatment, and patient reported
outcomes . The subset of PROs recommended included health related
quality of life, physical functioning, emotional functioning, exercise
tolerance, symptom severity, ability to work, and cognitive functioning.
While this list might seem exhausting to some, it highlights that AF is
particularly sensitive to the patient perceptive set. Specifically, the
group identified the importance of both generic PROs, as well as
AF-specific PROs. AF- specific instruments provide more face validity
and ecological validity to an AF clinic and represent the key domains
relevant to both providers and patients. Generic PROs allow for
normative comparisons to other same-aged peers who do not have AF. Both
approaches have value depending on the comparison of interest.