American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Appropriate Use Criteria: Early Screening for Psychosocial Risk and Protective Factors.

Abstract

The Major Extremity Trauma and Rehabilitation Consortium and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) have developed Appropriate Use Criteria for the Early Screening for Psychosocial Risk and Protective Factors. Evidence and clinical expertise were used to develop criteria for addressing mental and social health opportunities to help people recover from musculoskeletal injuries to the extremity, spine, and pelvis. The criteria were developed by identifying observable symptoms and results of screening that suggest mental and social health challenges among patients with lower extremity trauma in clinical practice. The 32 patient scenarios and three interventions (evaluate for psychological distress, evaluate for social health opportunities, and evaluate coping and resilience strategies) were developed by the writing panel of clinicians who are specialists in mental and social health in musculoskeletal illness. Next, a separate, multidisciplinary, voting panel made up of specialists and nonspecialists rated the appropriateness of treatment for each patient scenario using a 9-point scale to designate a treatment as "appropriate" (median rating, 7 to 9), "may be appropriate" (median rating, 4 to 6), or "rarely appropriate" (median rating, 1 to 3). Notably, with a high level of agreement, the voting panel determined that interventions to address mental and social health were appropriate in all scenarios as follows: 86% were rated appropriate, 14% were rated possibly appropriate, and none were rated rarely appropriate.