Whenever doctors and researchers develop a new medicine or treatment method for a disease or disorder, they have to test it out on animals and humans. The clinical trials are designed to administer the medicines to humans and check for safety and efficacy in real life. Anyone can join the clinical trials, but they have to complete the inclusion criteria. But what are the inclusion criteria for clinical trials? In this post, we will explain everything about the clinical trial inclusion criteria.
Inclusion criteria are the specific requirements that individuals must possess to be eligible for participation in a clinical trial. These criteria are carefully drafted to ensure that the trial results are reliable and applicable to the target population.
As the focus group and the end goal of every clinical trial is different, the inclusion criteria are set accordingly. For example, a healthy person cannot participate in the clinical trial meant for cancer medicine testing.
What are the Common criteria in Clinical Trials?
#1 – Medical History
One of the primary parts of the inclusion criteria is the consideration of participants’ medical history and any pre-existing conditions they may have. For example, a clinical trial testing a new medication for diabetes mellitus may only include individuals who have been diagnosed with diabetes mellitus and are not currently taking any other medications to alter the results. If you fulfill the primary medical history screening, then you can join the trials.
#2 – Geographical Location
The geographical location of the participants is one of the most important parts of the criteria. As people in different locations are exposed to different cultures, lifestyles, food, work ethics, genetics, and many other things, the results may vary and that’s why researchers specifically mention the geographical location in the criteria.
#3 – Age and Gender
One of the most common inclusion criteria in clinical trials relates to age and gender. Some trials may be designed to study the effects of a treatment on a specific age group, such as children, adults, or the elderly. Similarly, some studies are meant for certain genders and others may not be suitable to join such studies.
Final Words
The inclusion criteria is one of the most important parts of the clinical trials, as it works as the framework for recruiting the participants. Finding the right participants is harder for the researchers and that’s why the strong criteria are set to eliminate the wrong participants. In this post, we tried our best to explain everything about the inclusion criteria for clinical trials.