A clinical trial (also clinical research) is a research study in human volunteers to answer specific health questions. Carefully conducted clinical trials are the fastest and safest way to find treatments that work in people and ways to improve health. Interventional trials determine whether experimental treatments or new ways of using known therapies are safe and effective under controlled environments. Observational trials address health issues in large groups of people or populations in natural settings.
Participants in clinical trials can play a more active role in their own health care, gain access to new research treatments before they are widely available, and help others by contributing to medical research.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health, through its National Library of Medicine and other Institutes, maintains a database of clinical trials at ClinicalTrials.gov. Click here to see a list of the current clinical trials on rheumatoid arthritis.
The NIH is currently funding the Glucosamine and Chondroitin Arthritis Intervention Trial, or GAIT, to test whether or not glucosamine and chondroitin have a beneficial effect for people with knee osteoarthritis. No definitive results have been reported yet. Click here to see information on the GAIT trial.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health, through its National Library of Medicine and other Institutes, maintains a database of clinical trials, including those funded by the NIH, at ClinicalTrials.gov. Click here to see a list of the current clinical trials on osteoarthritis.
