Construction of clinical medication pathway for children with tic disorder

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this study was to construct a clinical medication pathway for children with tic disorder (TD) and provide a reference for rational drug use for children with TD. Methods: A literature review was conducted to develop an initial clinical medication pathway. Next, a two-round Delphi survey was conducted via a WeChat group. Experts were invited to rate the importance of each item on a 5-point Likert scale. The response rate, authority of the experts, coefficient of variation, and Kendall’s W were also calculated. Results: In total, 26 experts from medical institutions in Sichuan Province were included in the Delphi survey. After two rounds of expert consultation, a clinical medication pathway was constructed that included 41 items in eight categories. These categories were: participants in clinical medication management, TD assessment, comorbidities assessment, treatment objectives and plans, tic drug treatment, comorbid attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication treatment, recurrence and referral management, and medication compliance management. Conclusion: This study actively explored clinical medication pathways for children with TD in China and provided a standardized and highly operable medication pathway for reference in clinical practice. This pathway is expected to be widely used in treatment for children with TD. We suggest that further research should update and improve the clinical medication pathway using the latest evidence.