Similarly to older adults, children are a unique population with different physiological and developmental needs than adults. Children are effected by diseases and medicines in unique ways, which in turn means that the effectiveness of specific drugs should be measured independently.
It is important to perform clinical trials in children because scientists need to determine how different treatments, medications, and devices work on these populations.
Clinical research studies in children are what have helped develop child-appropriate medications and figure out which doses are the safest for each age group.
Sometimes when a child is suffering from a medical condition the doctor might ask the parents to consider enrolling him or her in a clinical trial to become part of a group of patients that are testing of a new drug or treatment.
What is a Clinical Trial?
Clinical trials are a type of research study designed to test the effectiveness of a new drug or treatment. Clinical trials are meticulously designed, planned, and carried out by scientists and other experts. These trials are carefully monitored by internal and external agencies in order to maintain the highest standards possible and to ensure the safety and comfort of its participants. Before a clinical trial even begins, it needs to be approved by the FDA and by an Internal Review Board that makes sure no part of the study poses a more than minimal risk for its participants and that the proposed research is clinically necessary and relevant.
External Link: For Parents and Children
All research studies are completely voluntary, meaning that the choice of participating in a clinical trial is completely up to the individual or legal guardian of the individual. This also means that any person has the right and freedom to withdraw their consent at any point in time. Withdrawing consent during the research study will not yield any physical or monetary consequences, nor will it affect their ability to receive adequate medical care.
If a parent agrees to enroll their child in a research study they must sign an informed consent document, which will outline all relevant information about the study as well as all the potential risks and benefits this trial might pose to the participant.
It is important to note that by the time a drug has reached advanced stages of the clinical research, it has generally been extensively tested on animals and sometimes even on healthy individuals to assess its potential toxicity, bioavailability, and general safety.
- Optimizing Attention and Sleep Intervention Study
on October 3, 2025 at 4:00 amConditions: Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders; Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; Child, Preschool; Sleep; Sleep Disturbance Interventions: Behavioral: Brief Parent Behavioral Intervention; Behavioral: Sleep-Focused Parent Behavioral Intervention Sponsors: University of Pittsburgh; National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Recruiting
- A Decentralized Clinical Trial to Promote Evidence-Based Care for Underserved Patients With Neurofibromatosis 1on October 3, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Neurofibromatosis 1 Interventions: Other: Letters about NF1 Care (Content Type 1); Other: Letters about NF1 Care (Content Type 2) Sponsors: Massachusetts General Hospital; Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute Recruiting
- Experiences of Managing Sleep Disordered Breathing in Children With Cerebral Palsy.on September 30, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB); Cerebral Palsy (CP); Respiratory Support Sponsors: University of Edinburgh Recruiting
- Dyad Plus Effectiveness/Feasibilityon September 30, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Weight Loss; Pediatric Obesity; Overweight Adolescents; Parent-Child Relations; Family and Household Interventions: Behavioral: Brenner FIT Standard; Behavioral: By Design Essentials; Behavioral: Dyad Plus Sponsors: Wake Forest University Health Sciences; National Institutes of Health (NIH) Recruiting
- Impact of Picture Book Reading on Preterm Infant Stability, Parental Anxiety, and Parent-Child Attachmenton September 30, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Effects of Parent-Child Reading on Preterm Infant Stability, Parental Anxiety, and Parent-Child Attachment Interventions: Behavioral: Parental Reading Picture-book Sponsors: National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University; Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taiwan Recruiting
- ATTACH in Denmark: A Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trialon September 23, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Mentalization; Recruitment of Participants; Adherence, Treatment; Drop Out; Parenting Intervention; Vulnerable Families; Feasibility Studies Interventions: Behavioral: ATTACH; Behavioral: Treatment as Usual (TAU) Sponsors: Johanne Smith-Nielsen; University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine Recruiting
- Parent Navigator Program (PNP) to Improve Outcomes in Latino/x Children and Parentson September 12, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Congenital Heart Disease Interventions: Behavioral: Parent Navigator Program; Behavioral: Standard of Care Sponsors: Children's Hospital Los Angeles Recruiting
- Game-Based Intervention to Promote HPV Vaccinationon September 12, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: HPV Infection; Vaccine-Preventable Diseases Interventions: Behavioral: HPV game Sponsors: Michigan State University; Arizona State University Recruiting
- Comparing Single Versus Repeat NMT on the Diversity of the Neonatal Nasal Microbiomeon September 11, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Staphylococcus Aureus; Microbial Colonization; Neonatal Infection Interventions: Biological: Nasal Microbiota Transplant (NMT); Biological: Placebo Sponsors: Johns Hopkins University Recruiting
- Project PEAK: Early Intervention for ADHDon September 9, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; Parent-Child Relations; Child Behavior; Parenting Interventions: Behavioral: Promoting Engagement with ADHD Pre-Kindergarteners Sponsors: Lehigh University; Institute of Education Sciences Recruiting
- Parenting STAIR: Adapting a Trauma-Focused Parenting Intervention for Military-Connected Mothers and Their Childrenon September 5, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: PTSD; Depression; Parent-Child Relations Interventions: Behavioral: Parenting-STAIR Modular (PSTAIR-M); Behavioral: Treatment as Usual (TAU) Sponsors: New York University; Cohen Veterans Network; University of California, Davis Recruiting
- Family, Responsibility, Education, Support, and Health for Families With a Child With Autismon September 5, 2025 at 4:00 am
Conditions: Autism Spectrum Disorder; Obesity, Childhood; Autism Interventions: Behavioral: PBT-A; Behavioral: Health Education (HE) Sponsors: University of California, San Diego; Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Recruiting
What Happens During a Clinical Trial?
All clinical trials are different and they depend on what the researchers are investigating. Most clinical trials are carried out in a hospital setting and all of them are performed under strict supervision.
One of the most common designs for a research study is called a randomized controlled trial (RCT). During an RCT the child will be randomly assigned into a treatment group or a placebo group, and participants will not know which group they were assigned to until the end of the study. This type of study is only carried out when participants are healthy enough to withstand a short amount of time without treatment. Regardless of the group they were assigned to, all participants will receive the necessary medical treatment after the study ends.
External Link: Is a Clinical Trial Right for Your Child?
What Are the Benefits of Enrolling My Child in a Clinical Trial?
Children clinical trials are very important to determine the safety and effectiveness of different medications and treatments for kids. Without clinical trials, doctors can only guess what is the appropriate dose for a child, so research studies are extremely important for taking the guesswork out of the clinical practice.
External Link: Why PTN Research Matters and Patient Safeguards in PTN Research
Scientist and pharmaceutical companies only carry out a research study when they have sufficient scientific knowledge to believe that a medication might actually be beneficial, so although it is never a guarantee, it is possible that the child has the opportunity to receive a potentially beneficial treatment even before it’s widely available.
What Are the Risks of Enrolling My Child in a Clinical Trial?
It is important to remember that a clinical trial is, after all, a trial; so parents should be prepared for the possibility of the treatment not working at all. Another potential risk is side effects; when a medication is being tested it is possible for some side effects to come up that were not present in previous phases of the study. To ensure that participants are safe, doctors and investigators monitor the effects of the treatment very closely by performing constant tests and assessments.