Approach to treating cystic fibrosis pulmonary exacerbations varies widely across us CF care centers

There is no standard definition of a CF pulmonary exacerbation universally accepted by clinicians. We aimed to investigate the variability of clinical practice among US CF clinicians in the diagnosis and treatment of exacerbations. Using clinical vignettes, we examined if variation in the identification and treatment of CF exacerbations is common, if practice patterns differ between CF care centers and what clinical factors determine treatment. Twenty‐eight clinical cases were developed by varying five clinical factors. Participants were given four options for treatment of the patient described in each vignette. Cases were sent via email to a convenience sample of 112 CF clinicians from 13 US CF centers, with 109 clinicians participating (97.3%). 2,792 of the 3,052 cases received a response (91.5%). ANOVA demonstrated variation in rater scores was explained by case scenario and by care center (P