Patient-reported Outcomes in Foot and Ankle Practice: Where do We Stand in 2022?

surgeons to administer and fill out the questionnaires, lack of staff to assist in data collection, lack of knowledge on how to use PROMs, lack of clear integration into clinical workflow, and limited access. 1 Many studies have introduced strategies to overcome the key barriers to PROs i n FOOt a n d ankle PRactice-WheRe d O We stand i n 2022?Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are standardized surveys completed by patients to enable healthcare professionals to monitor their physical, mental, and social health status.PROMs not only help assess the patient's perspective of their ailments, treatment, and quality of life but are also used for quantifying outcomes in clinical research.1 PROMs have also been widely incorporated in prediction algorithms and artificial intelligence-based diagnostic models to improve the predictive accuracy of these methods and provide patient-centric management plans.2 Equally significant, they help patients engage in self-reflection and enable them to identify what is important to them. 1 There are many PROMs designed specifically for foot and ankle disorders.Some of the salient ones include the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FOAS), Foot Function Index (FFI), Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM), Ankle Osteoarthritis Scale (AOS), American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS), and PROM Information System (PROMIS) (Table 1).Each questionnaire presents its own applications, advantages, and disadvantages.For instance, the FAAM has been shown to work well for quantifying pain and physical function in chronic foot and ankle disorders, 3 whereas the PROMIS captures the social and psychological factors of a patient's condition that can often be overlooked in orthopedic practices.4 There is a clear consensus that PROMs serve as the foundation for clinical research and have a significant impact on improving patient care by involving the patient in the process of decision-making.However, according to reports, around one-third of orthopedic centers currently collect PROMs appropriately.This is likely due to barriers of implementation, which include, but are not limited to, lack of time and interest among 1,