A
multi-center trial is a form of research
or clinical
trial which takes place at several locations simultaneously.
For example, in large-scale tests of the efficacy of a new
drug to treat Alzheimer's
disease, the researchers may collect data from patients
at a number of facilities around the country. Use of data
from several sources is usually considered advantageous because
it reduces the risk that anomalous results from one location
will affect the data. If patients at one location show beneficial
effects of the drug, this might mean the drug is effective
-- or it might merely reflect some idiosyncracy about the
patients themselves. For example, the patients at this clinic
might be disproportionately wealthy, or healthy, or of a certain
racial background -- and this may make them more (or less)
susceptible to Alzheimer's disease, independent of the new
drug. However, if patients at many different locations all
show the same effects of taking the drug, this is stronger
evidence of the drug's effectiveness.
by Catherine E. Myers. Copyright © 2006 Memory Loss and the Brain |