Clinical study design

Clinical study design is the formulation of clinical trials and other experiments, as well as observational studies, in medical research involving human beings and involving clinical aspects, including epidemiology .^[1] It is the design of experiments as applied to these fields. The goal of a clinical study is to assess the safety, efficacy, and / or the mechanism of action of an investigational medicinal product (IMP)^[2] or procedure, or new drug or device that is in development, but potentially not yet approved by a health authority (e.g. Food and Drug Administration).^[3] It can also be to investigate a drug, device or procedure that has already been approved but is still in need of further investigation, typically with respect to long-term effects or cost-effectiveness.^[4]

Some of the considerations here are shared under the more general topic of design of experiments but there can be others, in particular related to patient confidentiality and medical ethics.