Establishing recommendations for physical medicine and rehabilitation: the SOFMER methodology.
OBJECTIVE
The development of a rigorous methodology based on published results of clinical trials, evaluation of daily practice in France and multidisciplinary expert opinion to elaborate recommendations for rehabilitation interventions.


RESULTS
The following describes the methodology of SOFMER (Société Française de Médecine Physique et de Réadaptation [French Society of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation]) for developing recommendations for rehabilitation interventions. The test case was developing recommendations for rehabilitation in hip or knee osteoarthritis (OA) and hip or knee arthroplasty. Physicians in rehabilitation, orthopedic surgery and rheumatology identified, synthesized, and analyzed data from the literature by use of the usual French system of grading trials (the French Agency for Accreditation and Evaluation in Healthcare [ANAES] scale). The data were published results of comparative controlled studies such as randomized controlled trials, controlled clinical trials, cohort studies, case control studies, reviews of clinical trials, and case series, as well as uncontrolled cohort studies. The resulting recommendations were presented to the three annual French national congresses of rehabilitation, rheumatology, and orthopedic surgery for comment and for adapting to French professional practice. Finally, a panel of multidisciplinary experts (physicians in physical medicine and rehabilitation, rheumatologists, orthopedic surgeons, general practitioners, physical therapists, social workers, podologists, occupational therapists, nurses, and patients) validated the recommendations.


CONCLUSIONS
The SOFMER methodology could be an interesting tool for use in developing recommendations elaborated by all the concerned medical and surgical specialists in the wide domain of rehabilitation.
Rannou
F
F
Service de rééducation, APHP, université René-Descartes, groupe hospitalier Cochin, 27, rue du faubourg-Saint-Jacques, Paris 75014, France. francois.rannou@cch.aphp.fr
Coudeyre
E
E
Ribinik
P
P
Macé
Y
Y
Poiraudeau
S
S
Revel
M
M
D019644:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D019645:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005104:Expert Testimony; D005602:France; D006801:Humans; D015201:Meta-Analysis as Topic; D015207:Osteoarthritis, Hip / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D020370:Osteoarthritis, Knee / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D010810:Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine / Q000592:standards*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012046:Rehabilitation / Q000592:standards*; D012189:Retrospective Studies