title: How to use outcomes questionnaires: pearls and pitfalls.
abstract: Patient-reported outcomes serve as an essential and perhaps more relevant means for assessing patients' response to treatment than clinical measures alone. Many of the procedures performed in plastic surgery are associated with aesthetic outcomes. Therefore, it is pertinent to thoroughly understand the patient's perspective of achieved results. Surgeons need to possess knowledge and skills about outcomes assessments and understand how to apply them to improve quality of care delivered based on evidence. This article discusses the appropriate use of outcome questionnaires to rigorously evaluate treatment methods based on patient satisfaction and the outcome measurement instruments frequently used in plastic surgery.
authors.affiliation: Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, The University of Michigan Health System, 1500 East Medical Center Drive, 2130 Taubman Center, SPC 5340, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0340, USA.
authors.forename: Sunitha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Malay
authors.forename: Kevin C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Chung
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013518:Surgery, Plastic; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires