StudyMafia.

Org

Randomized
Controlled Trial

Submitted To: Submitted By:

Studymafia.org Studymafia.org
 Table Contents
✓Definition
✓Introduction
✓Reasons For Randomization
✓Conclusion

2
 Definition
An RCT in clinical
research typically
compares a proposed
new treatment against
an existing standard of
care; these are then
termed the
'experimental' and
'control' treatments,
respectively. 3
 Introduction

• A well-blinded RCT is considered the gold

standard for clinical trials. Blinded RCTs are
commonly used to test the efficacy of medical
interventions and may additionally provide
information about adverse effects, such as drug
reactions.
• A randomized controlled trial can provide
compelling evidence that the study treatment
causes an effect on human health.
4
●●●
5
 Reasons for Randomization
• Randomization prevents the skewing or
deliberate manipulation of results. Both
participants and research scientists can
influence results unless the researchers
assign participants to groups at random.
• Scientists refer to this skewing of results as
selection bias. An RCT gets rid of selection
bias by removing the element of choice.

●●●
6
 Reasons for Randomization
• For example, without randomization,
scientists may consciously or
subconsciously assign patients to the
group receiving the active treatment if
they look more likely to benefit from the
experimental treatment. This could make
a treatment appear more beneficial than it
actually is.

●●●
7
 Reasons for Randomization
• On the other hand, if scientists are
looking to demonstrate the
ineffectiveness or potential danger of a
certain treatment, they may assign
participants who have a higher risk of
complications or a lower chance of
success to the group receiving the
treatment.

●●●
8
 Reasons for Randomization
• The risk of selection bias may also be high in
trials by researchers who have received either
direct or indirect funding from a pharmaceutical
company looking to prove the efficacy and
safety of a new drug.
• For this reason, researchers must disclose any
potential conflict of interest when conducting a
clinical trial, as pharmaceutical manufacturers
have a clear financial interest in achieving
positive results.
●●●
9
 Reasons for Randomization
• Knowing which participants are getting the
experimental drug can result in sound
motivations as well as questionable ones.
Doctors could have a well-intentioned
influence over the results.
• Even selection bias with good intentions,
such as researchers having concerns about
the safety of a drug, is scientifically
unsound.
●●●
10
 Reasons for Randomization
• If the active treatment seems to be
producing severe side effects, for
example, doctors may try to protect
certain types of participant from the drug.
• Treating different subjects in different
ways during the trial reduces the integrity
of like-for-like comparisons, giving false
results.

11
 Conclusion

✓ A randomized controlled trial (RCT) is an

experimental form of impact evaluation in
which the population receiving the programme
or policy intervention is chosen at random from
the eligible population, and a control group is
also chosen at random from the same eligible
population.

12
References

– Google.com
– Wikipedia.org
– Studymafia.org
– Slidespanda.com
 Thanks
To
StudyMafia.org