Clinical Trials

Top Research Topics at Clinical Trials?

Clinical Trials facilitates discussions on Clinical trial, Internal medicine, Randomized controlled trial, Oncology and Cancer. Clinical trial research featured in the journal incorporates concerns from various other topics such as MEDLINE, Research design, Family medicine, Intensive care medicine and Alternative medicine. Clinical Trials connects the study in Research design with the closely related area of Sample size determination.

Clinical Trials explores research in Internal medicine and the adjacent study of Gastroenterology. Clinical Trials holds forums on Randomized controlled trial that merges themes from other disciplines such as Psychological intervention, Physical therapy, Intervention (counseling) and Statistics. Oncology research discussed connects with the study of Biomarker (medicine).

The journal facilitates discussions on Cancer that incorporate concepts from other fields like Cancer research, Adverse effect and Lung cancer.

• Clinical trial (34.98%)
• Internal medicine (25.15%)
• Randomized controlled trial (19.46%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

• Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized trials: a review of methods used in practice. (419 citations)
• Are missing outcome data adequately handled? A review of published randomized controlled trials in major medical journals: (378 citations)
• An exploratory test for an excess of significant findings (376 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at Clinical Trials:

The journal papers primarily focus on research topics in Clinical trial, Randomized controlled trial, Research design, MEDLINE and Statistics. While work presented in the journal papers provide substantial information on Clinical trial, it also covers topics in Context (language use), Management science, Informed consent, Actuarial science and Intensive care medicine. The journal articles focus on Randomized controlled trial but sometimes tackle the closely related topic of Physical therapy which is concerned with N of 1 trial.

What topics the last edition of the journal is best known for?

• Internal medicine
• Cancer
• Statistics

The previous edition focused in particular on these issues:

Clinical Trials explores disciplines such as Internal medicine, Cancer, Oncology, Clinical trial and Chemotherapy. The tackled Internal medicine research is interrelated with Gastroenterology which concerns subjects like Neutropenia and Interim analysis. Some problems in Cancer that were presented in it overlapped with concepts under Progressive disease, Tolerability, Melanoma, Lung cancer and Cohort.

The work on Oncology tackled in it brings together disciplines like Nivolumab, Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics and Radiation therapy. Randomized controlled trial, Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), MEDLINE and Intensive care medicine are some topics wherein Clinical trial research discussed in Clinical Trials have an impact. It focuses on Randomized controlled trial research which is adjacent to topics in Physical therapy.

The most cited articles from the last journal are:

• Composite grading algorithm for the National Cancer Institute’s Patient-Reported Outcomes version of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (PRO-CTCAE): (40 citations)
• Abstract CT003: Nivolumab (NIVO) + platinum-doublet chemotherapy (chemo) vs chemo as neoadjuvant treatment (tx) for resectable (IB-IIIA) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the phase 3 CheckMate 816 trial (9 citations)
• COVID-19 vaccine trials: The use of active controls and non-inferiority studies. (6 citations)

Papers citation over time

A key indicator for each journal is its effectiveness in reaching other researchers with the papers published at that venue.

The chart below presents the interquartile range (first quartile 25%, median 50% and third quartile 75%) of the number of citations of articles over time.

Top authors and change over time

The top authors publishing in Clinical Trials (based on the number of publications) are:

• Tom Brody (31 papers) absent at the last edition,
• David L. Sackett (28 papers) absent at the last edition,
• Susan S. Ellenberg (27 papers) absent at the last edition,
• James D. Neaton (16 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition,
• Janet Wittes (16 papers) absent at the last edition.

The overall trend for top authors publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top authors.

Top affiliations and change over time

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in Clinical Trials (based on the number of publications) are:

• Harvard University (157 papers) published 29 papers at the last edition, 19 more than at the previous edition,
• National Institutes of Health (127 papers) published 7 papers at the last edition, 5 more than at the previous edition,
• Johns Hopkins University (112 papers) published 11 papers at the last edition, 4 more than at the previous edition,
• University of Pennsylvania (100 papers) published 8 papers at the last edition, 3 more than at the previous edition,
• Duke University (97 papers) published 14 papers at the last edition, 6 more than at the previous edition.

The overall trend for top affiliations publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top affiliations.

Publication chance based on affiliation

The publication chance index shows the ratio of articles published by the best research institutions in the journal edition to all articles published within that journal. The best research institutions were selected based on the largest number of articles published during all editions of the journal.

The chart below presents the percentage ratio of articles from top institutions (based on their ranking of total papers).Top affiliations were grouped by their rank into the following tiers: top 1-10, top 11-20, top 21-50, and top 51+. Only articles with a recognized affiliation are considered.

During the most recent 2021 edition, 16.60% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 42.18% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 12.80% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 14.69% of all publications and 30.33% were from other institutions.

Returning Authors Index

A very common phenomenon observed among researchers publishing scientific articles is the intentional selection of journals they have already attended in the past. In particular, it is worth analyzing the case when the authors participate in the same journal from year to year.

The Returning Authors Index presented below illustrates the ratio of authors who participated in both a given as well as the previous edition of the journal in relation to all participants in a given year.

Returning Institution Index

The graph below shows the Returning Institution Index, illustrating the ratio of institutions that participated in both a given and the previous edition of the conference in relation to all affiliations present in a given year.

The experience to innovation index

Our experience to innovation index was created to show a cross-section of the experience level of authors publishing in a journal. The index includes the authors publishing at the last edition of a journal, grouped by total number of publications throughout their academic career (P) and the total number of citations of these publications ever received (C).

The group intervals were selected empirically to best show the diversity of the authors' experiences, their labels were selected as a convenience, not as judgment. The authors were divided into the following groups:

• Novice - P < 5 or C < 25 (the number of publications less than 5 or the number of citations less than 25),
• Competent - P < 10 or C < 100 (the number of publications less than 10 or the number of citations less than 100),
• Experienced - P < 25 or C < 625 (the number of publications less than 25 or the number of citations less than 625),
• Master - P < 50 or C < 2500 (the number of publications less than 50 or the number of citations less than 2500),
• Star - P ≥ 50 and C ≥ 2500 (both the number of publications greater than 50 and the number of citations greater than 2500).

The chart below illustrates experience levels of first authors in cases of publications with multiple authors.

Career Pathways in Clinical Research: Becoming a Registered Nurse

Given the significant growth and evolution of clinical research, interested professionals might be wondering how to carve out successful career paths within this sector. The nursing profession, in particular, plays a critical role in facilitating clinical trials and ensuring quality healthcare delivery. Anthony Fauci, the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at NIH, highlights nurses as the "backbone of the healthcare system," indispensable to effective medical research and patient care.

Aspiring nurses have different entry pathways into the clinical research industry, more specifically, the nursing profession. For instance, obtaining an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) facilitates entry as a registered nurse (RN), while a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) offers more expansive career opportunities. Notably, clinical trial nurses conduct duties such as organizing patient recruitment, ensuring patient care and safety during trials, recording and evaluating data, and liaising with other healthcare professionals. Consequently, these nurses require comprehensive education marked by in-depth practical and theoretical knowledge.

To accommodate these needs, various institutions, including online platforms, offer suitable programs tailored to aspiring registered nurses. For instance, if you are pondering steps on how to become a registered nurse in New Hampshire, you can find extensive resources and guidance to facilitate your journey. These resources outline key educational requirements, licensing processes, and additional professional development ventures that augment your competitiveness in the current job market.

Therefore, exploring these career-defining avenues will not only equip you with the essential skill set for your nursing career in clinical research but also bolster your contribution to advancing global health through high-impact research.