Elsevier

Respiratory Medicine

Volume 150, April 2019, Pages 161-164
Respiratory Medicine

European consensus meeting/statement on Bronchial Thermoplasty Who? Where? How?

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmed.2019.02.020Get rights and content
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Abstract

Background

Bronchial Thermoplasty (BT) is a bronchoscopic treatment for severe asthma. Following research trials there remains a need to guide BT treatment in clinical practice, specifically in the fields of patient assessment, selection and positioning of BT within the range of treatment modalities, BT treatment protocols and post-BT management and follow-up. Consensus statements can bridge the gap between evidence-based medicine and real world clinical practice.

Methods

We performed a modified RAND consensus analysis using a baseline list of statements derived from ATS/ERS Guidelines on Severe Asthma, Cochrane review and UK commissioning guidance. A panel of 5 European BT experts, individually scored the statements and following a day of discussion, rescored a revised final list independently.

Results

An initial list of 132 statements, were independently scored. These were modified to 108 following group discussion. Consensus/total agreement was reached for 68 (63%) of the statements; 8 (7.4%) statements achieving total disagreement. For only 17 statements, could some form of consensus not be achieved.

Conclusions

The consensus document could be applied to guide BT clinical practice and used to serve as a minimum acceptable level of assessment for BT, drive the development of clinical practice protocols and help define quality indicators

Keywords

Asthma
Thermoplasty
Consensus

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