Designing Analyses by Sex or Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in NIH-defined Phase 3 Clinical Trials

March 10, 2022

NIH-defined phase 3 clinical trials are required to conduct and report analyses by sex or gender, race, and ethnicity for each primary outcome. These analyses, referred to as “valid analyses” are unbiased assessments that on average, yield the correct estimate of the difference in outcomes between two groups of participants.

Should I Report the Sex or Gender of Study Participants to NIH?

December 16, 2021

NIH uses sex/gender to indicate that either sex or gender may be reported for inclusion enrollment purposes. The NIH encourages investigators to design their data collection instruments in a way that allows the participants to self-identify their sex or gender in a way that is meaningful within the study’s context. Participants always have the option not to identify with either sex/gender category. If both sex and gender identity are collected, investigators may choose which one to report based on the scientific question(s) that are the focus of the study.

New and Updated Resources Available to Help Design Rigorous Clinical Trials

June 9, 2021

We have embarked on a series of initiatives at NIH in recent years to enhance the quality, efficiency, accountability, and transparency of our supported clinical research. While we are all making great progress, our concerns about clinical trials that are overly complex, have small sample sizes, or rely on surrogate end points that lack clinical relevance remain. One resource to help address these concerns is the NIH Research Methods Resources website that NIH’s Office of Disease Prevention (ODP) launched in 2017. Since the site was recently revamped, we wanted to spotlight the new available tools and resources that can help you better plan the design, conduct, and analysis of rigorous NIH-defined clinical trials.