2020 Pediatric Perceptions & Insights Study Yields Insights on Trial Participation

A 2020 survey of 500 parents and children in the U.S. conducted by the Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation and commissioned by Parexel has yielded insights into why families choose to participate in clinical research and how to design clinical trials to better fit their needs, according to the survey report.

While survey respondents expressed largely positive views of pediatric clinical research, actual participation in pediatric research remains low. Only 16.7% of clinical trials registered on the World Health Organization’s portal involve pediatric patients, and only 12% of trials registered on clinicaltrials.gov are pediatric trials, even though children contributed to almost 60% of the total disease burden of the conditions being studied. As a result of low pediatric participation, the majority of drugs prescribed to children are only evaluated in adults.

“Understanding patient health journeys and study volunteer experiences is critical to designing more patient-friendly trials that ultimately enhance pediatric patient participation, so that we can continue to develop newer, safer and more effective drugs for children,” said Ken Getz, Founder and Chairman at CISCRP.

The Pediatric Perceptions & Insights Study was created, in part, as an outgrowth of questions included in the baseline CISCRP Perceptions & Insights Study that is conducted biennially in adult populations, which gauges public and patient perceptions, motivations, and experiences regarding clinical research participation. Its goal is to monitor trends and identify opportunities to better inform and engage the public and patients as stakeholders and partners in contributing to the clinical research enterprise.

For more of the survey’s findings, click here.