The main objective for this study was to obtain international consensus on a set of core outcome measures that should be recorded in all clinical trials of interventions intended to modify the duration of ventilation for invasively mechanically ventilated patients in the ICU.

A two-stage consensus process was undertaken between December 2015 and January 2018. The setting was international, including Europe, North and South America, Australia, Asia, and Africa.

Delphi study outcomes were scored by participants from one (least important) to nine (most important). Consensus criteria for including the outcome in the core set were more than 70% of responses rating the outcome above seven and not more than 15% rating the outcome less than 3.

This core outcome set will inform the design of future trials in this field by strengthening methodological quality and improving comparability across trials.

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