Clinical Meaningfulness of an Outcome Measure

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Original Editor - Ammar Suhail Top Contributors - Ammar Suhail, Kim Jackson and Claire Knott

Introduction[edit | edit source]

Outcome measures must be valid and reliable and assist us in interpreting change in our patients to have clinical meaning[1]. Clinical significance/meaningfulness is the practical importance of a treatment effect—whether it has a real genuine, palpable, noticeable effect on daily life. Clinical meaningfulness generally refers to an outcome measure’s ability to provide the clinician and the patient with consequential information[1]. It is a broad term which is usually described in the following terms for an outcome measure:

  • Floor and Ceiling Effect
  • Minimal Detectable Change (MDC)
  • Responsiveness
  • Minimal clinically important difference (MCID)

Floor and Ceiling Effect[edit | edit source]

Minimal Detectable Change (MDC)[edit | edit source]

Responsiveness[edit | edit source]

Minimal clinically important difference (MCID)[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Fetters L, Tilson J. Evidence based physical therapy. FA Davis; 2012 May 5.
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