Recruitment in the Trial of Nonpharmacologic Intervention in the Elderly (TONE).
OBJECTIVE
To compare the effectiveness of different approaches to participant enrollment in a behavior modification trial.


METHODS
Concurrent, prospective evaluation performed in context of recruitment for a randomized, controlled trial.


METHODS
Four study centers located in Baltimore, Maryland, Memphis, Tennessee New Brunswick, New Jersey, and Winston-Salem, North Carolina.


METHODS
Men and women aged 60 to 80 years who were being treated with a prescription medication for control of hypertension.


METHODS
Visit counts and percent yields were assessed at each stage of the screening and randomization process. Logistic regression was used to contrast the randomization yields for different recruitment strategies and to explore the impact of sociodemographic characteristics and geographic location on recruitment yields.


RESULTS
The overall randomization yields from a prescreen contact and a first screening visit to enrollment in the trial were 11% and 31%, respectively. Randomization yields varied significantly by participant age, education, and marital status.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results demonstrate the feasibility of recruitment for trials of nonpharmacologic interventions in older people and suggest that mass mailing and mass media advertising campaigns provide an effective means of enrolling in such studies participants with a broad range of personal characteristics.
Whelton
P K
PK
Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Babnson
J
J
Appel
L J
LJ
Charleston
J
J
Cosgrove
N
N
Espeland
M A
MA
Folmar
S
S
Hoagland
D
D
Krieger
S
S
Lacy
C
C
Lichtermann
L
L
Oates-Williams
F
F
Tayback
M
M
Wilson
A C
AC
D000329:Advertising; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004039:Diet, Sodium-Restricted; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic / Q000191:economics; D018579:Patient Selection; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000191:economics; D012107:Research Design; D014481:United States; D015431:Weight Loss
D000959:Antihypertensive Agents