Clinical Research Effectiveness and Outcomes

Clinical effectiveness research is the systematic scientific evaluation of the outcomes of clinical care, including diagnosis and therapy, based on principles of clinical epidemiology. This includes clinical trials, as well as diagnostic test evaluations and observational studies of outcomes of care. 

Examples of clinical effectiveness and outcomes research underway at Children's Research Institute include:

• Participation in key national clinical trials network for hematology, oncology and bone marrow transplant.
• A randomized trial of ibuprofen vs. acetaminophen with codeine for management of pain in children with fractures.
• A multi-center study to develop a clinical decision rule guiding the use of CT scanning in children with minor head injury.
• A study of the impact of family presence during trauma resuscitations on family coping and staff satisfaction.
• A multi-center, FDA-sponsored randomized trial of steroids vs. vincristine for treatment of infantile hemangioma.
• A clinical trial to demonstrate the ability of erythropoietin to protect the infant human heart during surgical repair of congenital heart defects.

Research in clinical effectiveness is the means by which novel diagnostic methods and treatment approaches are evaluated to guide the development of best practices and provide the most effective and safest care for children.