Self-management approaches to reduce the ill-health burden associated with musculoskeletal foot and ankle problems: A scoping review protocol

Abstract

Introduction: The high ill-health burden associated with musculoskeletal (MSK) disease has been widely reported, and various treatment approaches proposed. Increasingly, treatments have sought to reflect personalised care and incorporate self-management (SM). However, the range of SM approaches proposed for foot and ankle MSK problems, and their relative clinical or cost-effectiveness, has not been reviewed. A scoping review is required to understand the need/appropriateness of a systematic review on this topic.

Methods and analysis: The scoping review will be conducted in line with the PRISMA-ScR framework. We will perform an initial search across two databases to confirm search syntax. We will then complete a full search across three databases (Embase [Ovid], CINAHL [EBSCO], and Medline [EBSCO]) and grey literature (Cochrane Library, The British Library, The Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health [CADTH], The Health Foundation, The Kings Fund, and MedNar). We will use a snowballing strategy to review the reference list of retrieved texts, as per inclusion criteria, to identify previously unretrieved texts of potential relevance. In an iterative process, the protocol outlined above will be refined and repeated as new key terms come to light.

Ethics and dissemination: The scoping review will synthesise what is known and not known about SM approaches for MSK foot and ankle problems. The review will form the first step in outlining future research recommendations and areas of potentially unmet clinical need. The findings will be submitted for publication and shared in written form with stakeholder groups involved in the design of future research.

Keywords: ankle; burden; foot; protocol; review; self-management.