RT Book, Section
A1 Dinan, Michaela A.
A2 Lopes, Renato D.
A2 Harrington, Robert A.
SR Print(0)
ID 57836247
T1 Chapter 10. Observational Research
T2 Understanding Clinical Research
YR 2013
FD 2013
PB The McGraw-Hill Companies
PP New York, NY
SN 978-0-07-174678-6
LK accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=57836247
RD 2024/04/23
AB Clinical  research  can  be  broadly  divided  into  two  subsets:  experimental  research  and  observational  research.  The  vast  majority  of  new  medical  treatments  and  technologies  are  tested  through  experimental  or  interventional  research,  often  in  the  form  of  randomized  trials,  before  they  are  adopted  into  clinical  use.  In  contrast,  observational  studies  are  primarily  conducted  on  technologies  after  they  have  already  been  adopted  and  are  being  implemented  in  some  sector  of  the  healthcare  community.  Observational  research  occupies  a  critical  niche  within  healthcare  research  that  is  complementary  to  experimental  studies.  Understanding  the  relative  strengths,  weaknesses,  similarities,  and  differences  between  observational  and  experimental  research  is  critical  to  accurately  interpreting  clinical  research.