Expert Statements Concerning the Tapering of Oral Corticosteroids (OCS) for the Treatment of Asthma

OCS-Tapering-Delphi: Expert Statements Concerning the Tapering of Oral Corticosteroids (OCS) for the Treatment of Asthma: A Delphi Consensus Study

The objectives of this study are to use the Delphi method to assemble an expert panel representing innovation in asthma treatment, to collect freely suggested recommendation statements concerning OCS tapering (and sub-topics) among severe asthma patients from this panel for peer evaluation, and finally to determine the level of consensus for each statement from the panel as a whole.

A series of anonymous questionnaires will be administered to a panel of experts. Each questionnaire administered results in a body of information that is re-presented to the experts before performing the next round. Initial brainstorming questionnaires are open in nature, and are used to generate statements that individual experts would like to see evaluated by their peers. Subsequent ranking questionnaires require that each expert rank each statement according to a pre-defined likert scale. Serial ranking questionnaires are administered electronically and continue until stopping rules are met, or the maximum number of allowed rounds is achieved (capped at three rounds for the present study).

Experts are recruited by invitation or response to open call (see eligibility criteria and url at the end of this declaration.)

Inclusion Criteria:

• The expert is either a pulmonologist/respiratory disease specialist, an allergist, an endocrinologist, a paediatrician, a rheumatologist or a patient advocacy organisation representative
• All clinicians involved must manage patients on a weekly basis and have clinical experience in managing disease following oral corticosteroid withdrawal/tapering.
• Patient advocacy organization representatives must represent a relevant patient group (and provide contact information for their group)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Currently employed by a pharmaceutical company, or will have such employment in the upcoming 12 months
• Ownership in a pharmaceutical company or any other conflict of interest with the present study