The forecast for future clinical trials and clinical trialists-Storms or sunshine?
Randomized controlled trials are the most unbiased way to evaluate many types of healthcare interventions. Pharmaceutical and medical technology industries play an important role in developing and testing new interventions that have commercial potential. However, many interventions for the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of stroke are either not drugs or devices or have no commercial potential. Like many other clinicians who are uncertain about the value of existing or new treatments, we are involved in investigator-led clinical trials to resolve treatment uncertainties. There is common agreement that investigator-led clinical trials are facing increasing difficulties and that as a result clinicians may be deterred from pursuing clinical trials as a research career. In this article, we express our concerns for the future of such trials, balanced with the hope that systems to foster and sustain this important type of research in the future can be developed.
Department of Neurology, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands.
Catharina Jm
CJ
Klijn
Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK Peter.sandercock@ed.ac.uk.
Peter Ag
PA
Sandercock
D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D010820:Physicians; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D020521:Stroke / Q000628:therapy
Randomised clinical trial; meta-analysis; research waste