Clinical studies are tests involving humans in hopes to learn new knowledge about medical related subjects. There are two types of clinical studies. Clinical trials and observational studies.
Clinical Trials
The purpose of clinical trials is to test the safety and quality of new drugs, medical projects, procedures, and diets. It is tested to see if it is useful or, on the other hand, if it harmful. It is tested by taking the new product and a placebo (a neutral product with no active ingredients) to test the effectiveness of the new product.
Observational Studies
Observational studies don’t test anything. They only assess the outcomes of research plans or products. This step would come after the clinical trials to observe the effect of the products and the health of the patient. Also, observational studies can be used to observe the effects of routines, like a work out plan.
Learning About A Clinical Study
The study I chose to study was the “Double Blind, Placebo- Controlled Study of Raloxifene for Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia in Postmenopausal Women.” Being a double-blind study, this means that both the patients and researchers performing the test know who is taking the medication and who is taking the placebo pill. The purpose of this study was to add raloxifene to reduce psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia is older women. This study was carried out for a period of 12 weeks. In those 12 weeks, patients were assigned to take a 60mg of ralocifene daily, along with taking their regular medications. But, some, randomized patients were unknowingly taking a useless sugar pill known as the placebo. Patients were reviewed and monitored for progress in the months that passed. To participate in this study, certain requirements were needed. Examples include being diagnosed with the disease schizophrenia, the presence of negative symptoms, and having taken stable does of current medication atleast a month before trials. The results of this study followed as those treated with the raloxifene showed greater improvement than those treated with the placebo.
Human VS Animal Trials
Human and animal trials are different in several ways. For one, if the product being tested results in being unsafe, it is a lot better to lose the life of a mouse instead of that of another human being. Animals are good first testers to learn about the major effects of a product. While different, animal is good for its comparisons. Animals, like rats, have similar bodily features as us humans do. Making these trials effective for testing.
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