Assessing the impact of the NIH ctsa program on institutionally sponsored clinical trials

Abstract

Objective: To assess the impact of the NIH CTSA program on patient enrollment in clinical trials sponsored/collaborated by CTSA consortium institutions. Material and Methods: Using publicly available clinical trial data at ClinicalTrials.gov, we identify positive trend changes in the number of patients enrolled in clinical trials performed at CTSA consortium institutions over the years before and after their respective CTSA award dates. CTSA consortium institutions were matched with similar non-CTSA institutions. Results: As compared to matched non-CTSA institutions CTSA consortium sites noted an increase in patient enrollment after the CTSA awards. In particular, we detected a change-point, where a new enrollment trend emerged, 338 days after the CTSA award. No such trend was noted over the same period in the non-CTSA institutions. Conclusion: Our analysis provides evidence that the NIH CTSA funding program made a positive impact on patient enrollment. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.