Clinical Trials Day – 20th May
Eulogize the International Clinical Trials Day: 20th May with Clini India
May 20, 1747- Scottish Physician James Lind conducted the first clinical study of the treatment of Scurvy on 12 sailors.
It is a time to highlight the preponderance of high quality clinical trials to develop robust and cost-effective ways to address our most pressing health issues. It provides a focal point to raise awareness of the importance of research to health care, and highlights how partnerships between patients and healthcare practitioners are vital to high-quality, relevant research.
James Lind trial consisted of 12 men with scurvy, grouped into pairs and given a variety of dietary supplements from cider to oranges and lemons. After six days, there was a noticeable improvement in the group eating the fruit, providing evidence of the link between citrus fruits and scurvy. Clinical trials have developed a great deal since Lind’s discovery and are of vital importance in medical research.
Clinical Trials are a vital element of the work supported and funded by the National Institute for Health Research. Clinical trials have developed a great deal since Lind’s discovery, but today we remember his work and the importance of research in healthcare
Around the world International Clinical Trials Day is celebrated to raise awareness of the importance of clinical trials and research in healthcare. More than 100 activities and events are taking place across the country to celebrate the day and encourage more people to ask about clinical research through the campaign. The day provides a focal point to raise awareness of the importance of clinical research, and highlights how partnerships between patients and healthcare practitioners are vital to high-quality, relevant research.
First Clinical Trial of a Novel Therapy
Ambroise Paré, a French military surgeon, accidentally conducted the first clinical trial of a novel therapy because he ran out of the standard therapy on the battlefield and was forced to find an alternative. Paré tested a tincture of egg yolk, turpentine, and oil of roses against the standard therapy of boiling oil for sealing soldier wounds.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Began Regulating Clinical Trials
The FDA began using its authority to regulate clinical trials in 1961, though this authority had been granted with the passage of the 1938, Food, drug and cosmetic Act.
Status of Clinical Trials in India
Clinical research has grown exponentially over the past decade in India because of cost advantage, treatment naïve patient, qualified doctors conversant in English etc. India was the second most preferred country to conduct clinical trials outside the US in 2009. In India, Drug Controller General (India) (DCGI) is the competent authority for approving clinical trials as well as manufacturing and marketing drugs.
