Discovering and sharing knowledge about best practices in pediatric care by facilitating, organizing, and centralizing the performance of clinical effectiveness research is at the core of Clinical Future's expansive mission. This work requires a creative, diverse multidisciplinary team and a methodological approach to improve children’s health.

Clinical trials range in scope from small pilot studies to extensive multi-site studies which may, for example, compare the effect of a new drug with a placebo or another drug. The clinical trials pillar of Clinical Futures strives to advance and support clinical trials in pediatric disease, including stakeholder engagement, pragmatic designs, and adaptations for rare diseases. 

What do Clinical Trials study?

• New drugs or new combinations of drugs 
• New ways of doing surgery 
• New medical devices 
• New ways to use existing treatments 
• New ways to change behaviors to improve health 
• New ways to improve the quality of life for people with acute or chronic illnesses.

Learn more about the basics of clinical trials research:

• Society for Clinical Trials 
• Clinical Trials at PENN Medicine 
• Penn Medicine Master's and Certificate Programs in Clinical Research 
• PENN OCR page with Study- Start Finish Guides 
• PENN Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics 

NIH Resources: 

• Frequently asked questions around clinical research trials
• Searchable clinical trials registry and results database of federally and privately supported clinical trials

Love listening to podcasts? Here’s a list of Clinical Trials focused podcasts from industry experts.

• The Democratization of Medicine: Open Access, Social Media, AI, Apps, and Empowering the Patient as the Future of Clinical Research
• Reflection on Advances at the Intersection of Digital Health, Electronic Health Records, and Pragmatic Clinical Trials
• Advances at the Intersection of Digital Health, Electronic Health Records, and Pragmatic Clinical Trials: Real World Evidence: Contemporary Experience and Future Directions 
• How to Recruit Diverse Patient Populations in Clinical Research 
• Increasing Patient Diversity in Clinical Trials 
• Diversity within Clinical Trials 
• Considerations in Conducting Pediatric Clinical Trials 
• Patient Recruitment Failure in Clinical Trials  

Clinical Futures Projects Involving Clinical Trials Methodology:

BACK-OFF JSpA

The BACK-OFF JSpA study is a randomized pragmatic trial taking place at 21 Children's Hospital sites across the nation. Children living with Juvenile spondyloarthritis (JSpA) are often treated with tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi), a medication that enables patients to reach ‘quiet disease,’ a period when they no longer exhibit symptoms. This study investigates different TNFi de-escalation strategies for children who have sustained asymptomatic disease. The goal of the study is to help answer the questions that many physicians, patients, and families have about stopping medication and the risks involved.

Faculty Contributor: Pamela Weiss, MD, MSCE

The PUSH Study

The Prevention of Urinary Stones with Hydration (PUSH) study is a randomized clinical trial testing the effect of a strategy to help patients with kidney stones maintain a high enough fluid intake to prevent stone recurrence. In this randomized clinical trial, researchers are investigating the impact of increased fluid intake and increased urine output on the recurrence rate of urinary stone disease (USD) in adults and children.

Faculty Contributor: Gregory Tasian, MD, MSCE

SCOUT-CAP

This multi-center clinical trial compared short course (5 days) vs. standard course (10 days) of antibiotic therapy for treatment of community acquired pneumonia (CAP) in children. The short course resulted in similar clinical response and antibiotic-associated adverse effects, while reducing antibiotic exposure and resistance.

Faculty Contributors: Jeffrey Gerber, MD, PhD, MSCE

The TSC Study | ETUDES Center 

In the Transdiagnostic Sleep and Circadian Intervention (TSC) study, researchers will optimize acceptability, engagement, and scalability of a modularized intervention that targets a range of sleep and circadian difficulties using evidence-based principles—the Transdiagnostic Sleep and Circadian Intervention (TSC)—for youth at-risk for STBs, including Black youth, among whom mental health services are more stigmatized.

Faculty Contributor: Ariel Williamson, PhD, DBSM

iChart Study| ETUDES Center 

iChart is a randomized control trial, which includes a computer-based assessment of specific mental health risks and treatment preferences, a safety planning smartphone app, and a text-messaging intervention to encourage teens to utilize the safety planning app and engage in treatment.

Faculty Contributor: Stephanie K. Doupnik, MD, MS

Find a research study at CHOP.

How can I meet colleagues, workshop ideas, or stay up to date on Clinical Trials to work at Clinical Futures?

The Clinical Futures Clinical Trials Pillar brings together expert clinical trialists to collaborate and share their work.