Biomaterial Database

Missing data handling in chronic pain trials. 2011

Yongman Kim

Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA. yongman.kim@fda.hhs.gov

In chronic pain trials, proper handling of missing data due to dropout is an important issue because the dropout rate is high and the study conclusion may depend on the method chosen. The intent-to-treat (ITT) principle usually requires imputations for missing data to include the dropouts as well as completers in the statistical analysis. However, a statistical analysis with imputation might lead to a misinterpretation of clinical data. In chronic pain trials, treatment-related dropouts are clinical outcomes themselves. For example, an early dropout due to toxicity usually indicates a treatment failure, as does a dropout due to lack of efficacy. Problems with traditional methods such as last observation carried forward (LOCF) or baseline observation carried forward (BOCF) are identified especially in the chronic pain setting. Alternative methods, such as continuous responder analysis and two-part model analysis, treating dropouts as clinical events, are introduced with an example of osteoarthritis clinical trial data.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D010146	Pain	An unpleasant sensation induced by noxious stimuli which are detected by NERVE ENDINGS of NOCICEPTIVE NEURONS.	Suffering, Physical,Ache,Pain, Burning,Pain, Crushing,Pain, Migratory,Pain, Radiating,Pain, Splitting,Aches,Burning Pain,Burning Pains,Crushing Pain,Crushing Pains,Migratory Pain,Migratory Pains,Pains, Burning,Pains, Crushing,Pains, Migratory,Pains, Radiating,Pains, Splitting,Physical Suffering,Physical Sufferings,Radiating Pain,Radiating Pains,Splitting Pain,Splitting Pains,Sufferings, Physical
D010352	Patient Dropouts	Discontinuance of care received by patient(s) due to reasons other than full recovery from the disease.	Dropout, Patient,Dropouts, Patient,Patient Dropout
D002986	Clinical Trials as Topic	Works about pre-planned studies of the safety, efficacy, or optimum dosage schedule (if appropriate) of one or more diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques selected according to predetermined criteria of eligibility and observed for predefined evidence of favorable and unfavorable effects. This concept includes clinical trials conducted both in the U.S. and in other countries.	Clinical Trial as Topic
D003627	Data Interpretation, Statistical	Application of statistical procedures to analyze specific observed or assumed facts from a particular study.	Data Analysis, Statistical,Data Interpretations, Statistical,Interpretation, Statistical Data,Statistical Data Analysis,Statistical Data Interpretation,Analyses, Statistical Data,Analysis, Statistical Data,Data Analyses, Statistical,Interpretations, Statistical Data,Statistical Data Analyses,Statistical Data Interpretations
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000700	Analgesics	Compounds capable of relieving pain without the loss of CONSCIOUSNESS.	Analgesic,Anodynes,Antinociceptive Agents,Analgesic Agents,Analgesic Drugs,Agents, Analgesic,Agents, Antinociceptive,Drugs, Analgesic
D015233	Models, Statistical	Statistical formulations or analyses which, when applied to data and found to fit the data, are then used to verify the assumptions and parameters used in the analysis. Examples of statistical models are the linear model, binomial model, polynomial model, two-parameter model, etc.	Probabilistic Models,Statistical Models,Two-Parameter Models,Model, Statistical,Models, Binomial,Models, Polynomial,Statistical Model,Binomial Model,Binomial Models,Model, Binomial,Model, Polynomial,Model, Probabilistic,Model, Two-Parameter,Models, Probabilistic,Models, Two-Parameter,Polynomial Model,Polynomial Models,Probabilistic Model,Two Parameter Models,Two-Parameter Model
D016032	Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic	Works about clinical trials that involve at least one test treatment and one control treatment, concurrent enrollment and follow-up of the test- and control-treated groups, and in which the treatments to be administered are selected by a random process, such as the use of a random-numbers table.	Clinical Trials, Randomized,Controlled Clinical Trials, Randomized,Trials, Randomized Clinical
D016896	Treatment Outcome	Evaluation undertaken to assess the results or consequences of management and procedures used in combating disease in order to determine the efficacy, effectiveness, safety, and practicability of these interventions in individual cases or series.	Rehabilitation Outcome,Treatment Effectiveness,Clinical Effectiveness,Clinical Efficacy,Patient-Relevant Outcome,Treatment Efficacy,Effectiveness, Clinical,Effectiveness, Treatment,Efficacy, Clinical,Efficacy, Treatment,Outcome, Patient-Relevant,Outcome, Rehabilitation,Outcome, Treatment,Outcomes, Patient-Relevant,Patient Relevant Outcome,Patient-Relevant Outcomes
D057194	Intention to Treat Analysis	Strategy for the analysis of RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS AS TOPIC that compares patients in the groups to which they were originally randomly assigned.