What is a Clinical Study?

Patient enrollment is complete for the LIFE-BTK clinical trial. A special thanks to the investigators, research coordinators and enrolled patients for making this trial possible.

What is a Clinical Study?

A Clinical Study is Also Known as a Clinical Trial

A clinical study can be used to study diseases in people and new medications or new medical devices to treat diseases like CLI

Those who participate in clinical trials are volunteers who meet the eligibility criteria. Many of these studies help confirm if the medication or device is safe and works. The patients in the study are under the care of highly trained, doctors, nurses and researchers that are focused on giving the best care to each patient in the study.

There are laws and regulations to protect a patient and privacy when in this study.

 

Hear Dr. Shishehbor, President of UH Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, explain the critical factor for diverse patient enrollment in PAD studies such as LIFE-BTK.

Why participate in a clinical study?

Clinical studies advance modern medicine.

They can lead to new ways to diagnose and treat disease, and improve our understanding of our health and how we can fight and prevent disease. Learning more about these types of studies helps you better understand just how important this type of research is to creating life-saving technologies, including new medical devices and medications. Once you're informed, you might decide to participate in a clinical study yourself.

Some people join a study because the treatments they have tried for their health problem did not work or because there is no treatment available. By being part of a clinical trial, participants may gain access to new treatments before they are widely available.

The risk of peripheral artery disease is greater among African American, Hispanic and Native American communities. Having patients from these communities will help to battle this disease for those who have it now and will in the future. We can make a difference together.

Many people say participating in a clinical trial is a way to play a more active role in their own health care and the community where they live.

Participants in clinical trials should reflect the people who are most likely to use the therapy or device that is being studied. That is why it is important to enroll patients of different races, ethnicities, sexes and ages. Having a diversity of patients in clinical trials ensures the effectiveness of the treatment across all populations.