A New Instrument Measures the Experience of Eczema Control in Adults and Children – Dermatology Advisor

Recap of atopic eczema (RECAP) is a questionnaire instrument with the potential to improve the reporting of eczema control in research and clinical practice, according to study research published in the British Journal of Dermatology.

Eczema control is multifaceted and an important outcome in eczema research; however, no validated instruments have been identified for measuring the patients perspective of eczema control in clinical trials. Therefore, 14 expert panel members co-produced the RECAP instrument using a mixed-methods approach that involved expert panel meetings, data collection based on input from people with eczema/caregivers via a focus group (n=6), cognitive interviews (n=13), and an online survey with people with eczema/caregivers (n=330). RECAP is a 7-question instrument that captures an individuals experience of eczema control in patients of all ages and eczema severities. The panel members developed 2 versions of RECAP: a self-reported version for adults/older children with eczema and a caregiver-reported version for younger children with eczema. The development process aimed to ensure good content validity and feasibility, and initial testing suggested no floor or ceiling effects and good construct validity.

A study limitation may have been potential bias in the types of people who would be willing to take part in focus groups, interviews, and online surveys voluntarily, the investigators noted.

The researchers concluded that, Further studies are now required to confirm the psychometric properties of the RECAP instrument in different populations and confirm the suitability of RECAP for use in research studies and clinical practice.

Disclosure: Several study authors declared affiliations with the pharmaceutical industry. Please see the original reference for a full list of authors disclosures.

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References

Howells L, Chalmers JR, Gran S, et al. Development and initial testing of a new instrument to measure the experience of eczema control in adults and children: Recap of atopic eczema (RECAP) [published online December 3, 2019]. Br J Dermatol. doi:10.1111/bjd.18780

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A New Instrument Measures the Experience of Eczema Control in Adults and Children - Dermatology Advisor