title: Clinical trials.
abstract: The randomized clinical trial (RCT) is often referred to as the gold standard for the assessment of treatment efficacy. RCTs are receiving greater attention in the literature and higher priority by funding agencies than they have in the past. In this paper, the basic principles of clinical trial design are reviewed using examples from the neurosurgical literature. The importance of designing the trial to answer one question well is emphasized.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Primary Children's Medical Center, University of Utah, 100 North Medical Drive, Salt Lake City, Utah 84113-1100, USA.
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Kestle
mesh_terms: D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012107:Research Design; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013514:Surgical Procedures, Operative