Epidemiology (VII) Clinical Trials

Question 1

What is the difference between a clinical trial and an observational study?

Answer 1

Randomization - Clinical trials are randomized comparisons; observations are non-random

Question 2

Define ‘clinical trial.’

Answer 2

A clinical study in which participants are assigned to receive one or more interventions (or no intervention) so that researchers can evaluate the effects of the interventions on biomedical or health-related outcomes

Question 3

What is the gold standard of public health studies?

Answer 3

A randomized, double-blind clinical trial

Question 4

What are the cons of clinical trials?

Answer 4

They are expensive, time-consuming, and effort-intensive

Question 5

What type of interventions can be tested in a clinical trial?

Answer 5

ONLY beneficial interventions (key points: beneficence and nonmaleficence)