Patient-reported Outcome Measures in Perianal Fistulizing Crohn’s Disease

Perianal fistulizing Crohn’s disease (PFCD) is a disabling complication of Crohn’s disease (CD) that can significantly impact the patients’ quality of life (QoL) and often requires multidisciplinary care. Clinical trials assessing the efficacy of medical and surgical interventions for fistulas usually evaluate outcomes such as the closure of fistula tracts or radiologic healing. However, these traditional outcome assessments fail to capture the impact of the disease from patients’ perspectives. In this context, regulatory authorities have increasingly encouraged the inclusion of validated patient-reported outcomes (PRO) that assess disease activity and reveal how a patient functions and feels. This recent trend toward patient-centered care aims to ensure that improvements in efficacy outcomes are accompanied by meaningful benefits to patients. The aim of this review is to discuss currently available PRO measures (PROMS) for the assessment of PFCD to provide physicians with appropriate tools aiming to optimize patient care and disseminate the use of these instruments in clinical practice.