Potential Benefits and Risks of Interim Analyses in Clinical Studies

In: NEJM Evidence · 2023 · vol. 2(7) , pp. EVIDe2300124 · doi:10.1056/evide2300124 · PMID:38320168 · W4382245927
editorial OA: closed CC0
View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-09

Interim analyses evaluate ongoing clinical trial data to inform decisions about trial continuation or design modification, potentially saving resources and time while protecting patients.

One-sentence paraphrase of the abstract; not a substitute for reading it. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

Interim analyses are statistical evaluations of data collected during an ongoing study. These analyses can provide early evidence of the effectiveness and safety of an intervention, allowing investigators to make informed decisions about whether to continue the trial or revise the study design to optimize the trial outcomes. When used judiciously, interim analyses offer potential benefits such as resource and time savings, expedited treatment development, and protecting patients from ineffective or unsafe interventions.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Citation neighborhood (sparse)

Too few in-corpus citations on either side for a chart; here are the lists.

Cites (2)

References (5)

Source provenance

openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK