Assessment of Trends in the Design, Accrual, and Completion of Trials Registered in ClinicalTrials.gov by Sponsor Type, 2000-2019 | Research, Methods, Statistics | JAMA Network Open | JAMA Network

Assessment of Trends in the Design, Accrual, and Completion of Trials Registered in ClinicalTrials.gov by Sponsor Type, 2000-2019 | Research, Methods, Statistics | JAMA Network Open | JAMA Network

Clinical trials are getting smaller, testing more non-drug therapies

An analysis of nearly 20 years of data from ClinicalTrials.gov shows that these studies have been skewing smaller in size, and that fewer drug trials have been conducted over time. Here's more from the study, which looked at data from more than 245,000 trials conducted between 2000-2019: 

• Sponsorship: Only 3% of the trials were sponsored by the NIH or other government entity, while 29% were industry-sponsored. Government-sponsored trials decreased over time, while trials funded by industry or other sources increased with time. 
• Sample sizes: The average sample size for trials was 60 participants, a figure that decreased over the study duration. More than half of industry-led trials, and 67% of NIH-led trials, had fewer than 100 enrollees.  
• Interventions: The proportion of completed trials testing drugs went from 71% in 2000 to just 40% in 2019. In contrast, trials testing non-drug interventions such as devices or behavioral therapies doubled through the study's duration.