A Pilot Study of Implementing Patient Reported Outcome Measures in the Australasian Pelvic Floor Procedure Registry

Abstract The Australasian Pelvic Floor Procedure Registry (APFPR) records information about procedures for stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse. This study aimed to test the feasibility of capturing Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) in women with pelvic floor disorders (PFDs) identified via the APFPR. We administered the Australian Pelvic Floor Questionnaire (APFQ) in women with PFDs prior to surgery (baseline) and six months post-surgery through a combination of email, postal mail, SMS and telephone. Results were reported descriptively, as number and proportion for PROMs response rates and data completeness, and as a mean and standard deviation (SD) for the APFQ scores. The APFQ was administered to 140 patients at baseline and to 112 post-surgery. The baseline PROMs response rates were high (75%), but decreased to 56% at follow up. The overall APFQ completeness was ~98%. The APFQ dysfunction scores revealed a significant improvement at six months (mean (SD) score at baseline=14.5 (5.7), six months=11.4 (6.5), p≤0.001). Significant improvement in the bladder and prolapse domains (p≤0.001) were particularly observed. The results showed an overall improvement in quality of life scores at follow up, suggesting that the APFQ was a suitable instrument for the APFPR.