Abstract

In concert with pediatric clinical trials

Author(s): Sunil Shewale and Sameer Parekh

Research involving the pediatric population is essential if children are to reap the full benefits derived from advances in medical science. However, children represent a vulnerable population and thus, research with adults cannot simply be generalized or extrapolated to a pediatric population. To study this gap between adults and children for their well-being, disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment, high-quality clinical research is required. Therapeutic products that are likely to be of high clinical value in children need to be fully studied scientifically before their widespread use. Despite the need for high-quality clinical research in children, significant barriers exist, and there can be no clear-cut and easy answer that could be implemented overnight. This necessitates different approaches that fit an increasingly narrower medical profile of the pediatric population. This article describes various issues encountered by clinical studies in the pediatric population that remain to be solved.