Ron Ben-Amotz - Complications in Canine Cranial Cruciate Ligament Surgery

Minimal clinically important difference was defined as “the smallest difference in score in the domain of interest which patients perceive as beneficial and which would mandate, in the absence of troublesome side effects and excessive cost, a change in the patient's management” [32] which was later simplified to “the smallest change that is important to patients” [33]. Although many human studies use patient‐reported outcomes to define MCID, it is often compared to objective data. The major limitations of MCID include inconsistent definitions or values for MCID, cost of treatment not being taken into consideration, and MCID often varies depending on the baseline (more severely affected patients often need a smaller improvement to be pleased with the outcome). Alternative methods to put datasets into context include utilizing confidence intervals and probability. Regardless of the statistical methods used, they should be considered prior to the onset of a study so investigators remain unbiased. Unfortunately, most veterinary journals, reviewers, and investigators rely solely on the p value to determine significance, limiting thorough evaluation of different interventions.

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