In the context of the rapid development of contemporary medical industry and the unbalanced development of various subspecialties, expert consensus plays an extremely important role in guiding clinical practice and improving the quality of medical care. However, there are some deficiencies and limitations in the formation process and final report of the expert consensus. Therefore, this paper summarizes and reviews the definition, applications, and functions of expert consensus and the new progress of expert consensus formation methods by fully reviewing the literature, and puts forward the prospect. The purpose is to provide a reference for the production and application of expert consensus related to medical care, improve the outcomes of medical care, and upgrade the quality and level of medical services.
COVID-19 has been an established and continuing health problem. For the first time, this consensus focused on multi-scenario populations in the home/community, hospitalization and rehabilitation periods, and addressed medical nutrition management issues on which no consensus had yet been reached. This consensus was formulated on the basis of a comprehensive review of the existing evidence combined with the opinions of experts, with a view to complementing the existing guidelines/consensus.
The high incidence of hydatid disease in seven northwestern provinces, is one of the reason of "Poverty due to illness, and return poverty due to illness" in China. The incidence of chest hydatid disease in China after hepatic hydatid disease ranks second. Department of thoracic surgery in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University is on the domestic leading position of the treatment of chest hydatid disease. Since 1956 the first case of pulmonary hydatid cyst were completed, we have successfully finished the surgical treatment of pediatric chest hydatid disease, chest hydatid disease complex, huge pulmonary hydatid cyst, mediastinal and pleural hydatid cyst, and rib hydatid in our department. To further standardize the treatment of chest hydatid disease, a special formulation of "technical specification for chest hydatid disease diagnosis expert consensus" by our department were produced, in order to help clinicians treat chest hydatid disease by more suitable strategies. This consensus was released in July 2015, for the original version. The definition, diagnosis, treatment principle, and prevention of chest hydatid disease were elaborated and clinical experiences of 60 years were combined with in this consensus, in order to help the clinicians for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of hydatid disease.
Mediastinal and chest wall tumors contain various benign and malignant tumors. In order to further standardize the whole-course diagnosis and treatment of mediastinal and chest wall tumors, the consensus was formulated through discussion by the expert group. Based on the clinical diagnosis and treatment experience and various prospective and retrospective studies, the consensus was formed.
Clinical practice guidelines need to be based on evidence, but traditional Chinese medicine, especially integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine guidelines, inevitably need to combine clinical research evidence, ancient literature, and expert experience and consensus. In the process of formulating, there are deviations in understanding and application of the expert consensus method and expert experience, resulting in opaque of the recommendations, unclear of the details of the diagnosis and treatment strategy, less prominent of the advantages and value of traditional Chinese medicine, which affects the scientificity, transparency, applicability, promotion and application of the guidelines of traditional Chinese medicine or integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine. This study discusses the guiding principle of "evidence as a core, consensus as a supplement, and experience as a reference" that was generally followed and puts forward detailed methodological suggestions to the formulation of guidelines for traditional Chinese medicine and integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine.
The subtype of lung cancer that presents as subsolid nodules on imaging exhibits unique biological behavior and favorable prognosis. Recently, the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) issued "The 2023 American Associationfor Thoracic Surgery (AATS) expert consensus document: Management of subsolid lung nodules". This consensus, based on the latest literature and current clinical experience, proposes updated strategies for managing subsolid nodules. It emphasizes the correlation between imaging findings and pathological classification, individualized follow-up and surgical management strategies for subsolid nodules, and multimodal treatment approaches for multiple subsolid pulmonary nodules.
Clinical efficacy evaluation is important for the development of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). In view of the existing accumulation and current situation of the TCM clinical efficacy evaluation, based on the international perspective, and taking the rational and objective evaluation of TCM clinical efficacy and safety as the foundation, in order to enhance TCM evidence level to support clinical decision-making and promote TCM industry and TCM internationalization development, the State Administration of TCM entrusted China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences to establish China Center for Evidence Based Traditional Chinese Medicine (CCEBTCM). CCEBTCM is expected to optimize the allocation of evidence-based research resources in TCM field to further integrate advantages of evidence-based TCM research teams, promote consensus on evidence-based TCM standards, share evidence-based TCM data or information and lead cultural exchanges between Chinese and overseas. In this way, the status and influence of TCM in the world will be enhanced so that it can better serve global health.
The population of various fundus diseases in China is vast, and the number of patients is continuously increasing due to the aging population. In contrast, fundus disease awareness among the general public in China is low, and grassroots screening needs urgent improvement. At the same time, the diagnosis and treatment rate are quite low, and the treatment methods for late-stage diseases are limited, resulting in poor prognosis of visual function and high blindness rate. Chronic fundus diseases require long-term, standardized treatment and long-term follow-up, which can be burdensome for patients, leading to high missed visit rates and reduced therapeutic effects. The "14th Five-Year Plan for Eye Health (2021-2025)" clearly put forward the requirements of strengthening the construction of the fundus disease prevention and control system. We urgently need to develop a management model for chronic diseases of fundus diseases tailored to China's national conditions. This will require establishing corresponding management platforms, improving personnel allocation, and enhancing compliance in the treatment of fundus diseases, to improve treatment effectiveness and fundamentally reduce blindness rates. After China's authoritative experts in the field of fundus diseases through the organization of in-depth and comprehensive thematic discussion, and the use of the improved version of Delphi method for collective decision-making and opinion consultation, a series of consensus guidance and suggestions were finally formed. These valuable professional insights will strongly promote the establishment of an appropriate chronic fundus disease management system in China, ensure that patients with fundus disease get long-term, standardized medical services, and lay a solid foundation for improving the overall prevention and treatment of fundus diseases.
Wound infection can prolong wound healing time, increase hospitalization cycle and readmission rate, seriously affect patients’ quality of life and increase economic expenditure. Timely and accurate identification and management of wound infections is key to promoting wound healing and maximizing cost-effective management. In 2022, the International Wound Infection Association published the third edition of Wound Infection in Clinical Practice: Principles of Best Practice. The consensus incorporates new advances in research and clinical practice in the areas of wound environment, risk factors for infection, biofilms, antibiotic resistance, and the identification and management of wound infections, and provides detailed approaches to infection assessment and management. This article introduces the key elements of the 2022 expert consensus and interprets the updated content to help healthcare professionals, patients, caregivers, and policy makers understand the latest consensus document, promote its clinical application in the prevention and treatment of wound infection, and better improve the quality of clinical practice.
With the widespread adoption of low-dose CT screening and the extensive application of high-resolution CT, the detection rate of sub-centimeter lung nodules has significantly increased. How to scientifically manage these nodules while avoiding overtreatment and diagnostic delays has become an important clinical issue. Among them, lung nodules with a consolidation tumor ratio less than 0.25, dominated by ground-glass shadows, are particularly worthy of attention. The therapeutic challenge for this group is how to achieve precise and complete resection of nodules during surgery while maximizing the preservation of the patient's lung function. The "watershed topography map" is a new technology based on big data and artificial intelligence algorithms. This method uses Dicom data from conventional dose CT scans, combined with microscopic (22-24 levels) capillary network anatomical watershed features, to generate high-precision simulated natural segmentation planes of lung sub-segments through specific textures and forms. This technology forms fluorescent watershed boundaries on the lung surface, which highly fit the actual lung anatomical structure. By analyzing the adjacent relationship between the nodule and the watershed boundary, real-time, visually accurate positioning of the nodule can be achieved. This innovative technology provides a new solution for the intraoperative positioning and resection of lung nodules. This consensus was led by four major domestic societies, jointly with expert teams in related fields, oriented to clinical practical needs, referring to domestic and foreign guidelines and consensus, and finally formed after multiple rounds of consultation, discussion, and voting. The main content covers the theoretical basis of the "watershed topography map" technology, indications, operation procedures, surgical planning details, and postoperative evaluation standards, aiming to provide scientific guidance and exploration directions for clinical peers who are currently or plan to carry out lung nodule resection using the fluorescent microscope watershed analysis method.