How Do PROMIS Scores Correspond to Common Physical Abilities?

Area of Science:

• Orthopaedic Surgery
• Health Outcomes Research
• Biostatistics

Background:

• Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) is a general tool for orthopaedic surgery outcomes.
• Implementing PROMIS data at the point of care presents challenges.
• Orthopaedic surgeons may lack familiarity with PROMIS numerical scores' real-world meaning.

Purpose of the Study:

• Identify key PROMIS Physical Function (PF) items frequently used by orthopaedic patients.
• Graphically display item responses to translate PROMIS scores into physical ability levels.

Main Methods:

• Analyzed 97,852 PROMIS PF assessments from 37,517 orthopaedic patients (2017-2020).
• Identified frequently administered PROMIS CAT items (>0.1% cohort use).
• Grouped patients by PROMIS PF score categories and mapped response frequencies to ability levels.

Main Results:

• 28 items were frequently used; the top 4 related to physical labor, yard work, chores, and walking.
• Graphical displays linked PROMIS scores to patient ability levels.
• Patients scoring 40 reported 'some difficulty' with key activities, unlike those scoring 50 ('little/no difficulty') or 30 ('cannot do').

Conclusions:

• Developed a visual key translating PROMIS scores into clinically relevant physical ability terms.
• Visual displays can enhance patient-provider communication and understanding of PROMIS scores.