How Calibrated Are Your Trial-Measurement Tools?

By Dr. Nathaniel Katz, Chief Science Officer, Analgesic Solutions

No one would proceed with a clinical trial if a key measurement tool — a thermometer or fMRI, for example — was improperly calibrated. So why don’t we hold our participants, who are arguably the most critical component of any trial, to a similar standard of calibration?

A clinical trial is itself a measurement system--at least, it should be. Each component must be calibrated to precisely measure treatment effect. Too often, however, scientists fail to calibrate the most significant of their measurement instruments: trial participants. Optimizing the performance of each study participant is essential in preventing or mitigating data-quality risks.