Outcomes in intervention research on snakebite envenomation: a systematic review

Area of Science:

• Global health
• Clinical trial methodology
• Snakebite envenomation research

Background:

• Core Outcome Sets (COS) standardize outcome measurement in research domains.
• Snakebite envenomation research lacks standardized outcome reporting, hindering comparisons.
• A foundational step for COS development is identifying previously reported outcomes.

Approach:

• Conducted a global systematic review of 15 electronic databases, 8 trial registries, and reference lists.
• Extracted verbatim data on outcome definitions, measures, and time-points from 97 studies.
• Classified and consolidated 538 reported outcomes into 88 unique outcomes using an established taxonomy.

Key Points:

• Identified 88 unique outcomes across mortality, life impact, resource use, adverse events, and physiological/clinical domains.
• Outcome reporting in snakebite trials shows significant heterogeneity in measures, definitions, and time-points.
• Patient-Related Outcome Measures (PROMs) were reported in only 17.04% of included trials.

Conclusions:

• Heterogeneity in snakebite intervention trials necessitates the development of high-quality, region-specific COS.
• Standardized COS will improve future trial design and outcome reporting consistency.
• Gaps exist in reporting PROMs, resource use, and life impact outcomes in snakebite research.