Essentials Of Clinical Research Tampa Residents May Wish To Know

By Barbara Walker


Clinical research is needed to find cure for conditions that do not have a clear management protocol. It is also paramount that an alternative is provided to ensure that the conditions are put under control as cure is being sought. The aim of research is often to create a new drug, device or establish a non-pharmacological way of curing disease. There are several important concepts on clinical research tampa residents may find interesting.

Before a drug is put on trial, it has to undergo certain processes to ensure it is safe for use in test subjects. Such processes will determine characteristic features of a potential drug including its absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion from the body. This is referred to as the pharmacokinetics of the drug. Pre-clinical studies also try to find out the pharmacodynamic nature of the substance in question. Pharmacodynamics refer to the reaction of the body to the drug including its desired and adverse side effects. At the end of a pre-clinical study, researchers are in a position to decide just how much of the drug can be tolerated by a given individual.

In some instances, medical equipment is usually the one undergoing scientific studies to facilitate diagnosis and treatment of disease. In this case, the device does not need to go through the initial pre-clinical phase as drugs do. Medical devices instead are taken through what is good laboratory practices with the aim of ascertaining whether the equipment is sustainable in the human body and just how safe it is for use.

A more recent step has been introduced to quicken the process of research. This step is simply referred to as phase zero. Only a limited number of individuals are tested. In addition, the drug administered is of levels way below the therapeutic concentration. The idea is to chaff out drug characters that have very minimal chances of being effective later in the trial and subsequently when launched into the market.

The next thing is to recruit a number of individuals ranging from three to a hundred. The main objective is to evaluate certain concerns including efficacy of a given dosage and the toxicity profile of the agent under study. Whether the agent will be in capsule, tablet or in solution form can also be determined at this point.

Usually, healthy persons are used for study. The disadvantage is that these individuals may get sick in the process. Therefore, such people participate at a fee and informed consent is part of preparation. Alternatively, patients who are suffering from certain conditions and have not responded to all the available treatments in the market can sign up for such trials. Another category is that of patients with terminal illnesses.

Phase two of research requires the participation of more than a hundred people. This phase mainly tests for efficacy of a drug on a larger number of individuals. The third phase calls for more than a hundred individuals to participate. It is an intensive phase that seeks to prove the value of a therapeutic agent.

The final step is phase four which is mainly a surveillance stage. This step can be used to study additional possibilities such as the effect of certain medication in pregnant women or children. Such special groups are usually hesitant to participate in the earlier stages because of the high risk involved and can only be included after successful tests in healthy adults.




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