Table 1.
Characteristics of included trials
| Characteristics | No (%) of trials (n=52) |
|---|---|
| Medical domain: | |
| Haematology or oncology | 11 (21) |
| Cardiology or angiology | 4 (8) |
| Dermatology | 4 (8) |
| Pneumology | 3 (6) |
| Gynaecology | 3 (6) |
| Radiology | 3 (6) |
| Urology | 2 (4) |
| Endocrinology | 2 (4) |
| Nephrology | 2 (4) |
| Clinical chemistry | 2 (4) |
| Anaesthesiology | 2 (4) |
| Forensic medicine | 2 (4) |
| Ophthalmology | 2 (4) |
| Psychiatry or psychosomatic medicine | 2 (4) |
| Gastroenterology | 1 (2) |
| Rehabilitation | 1 (2) |
| Rheumatology or immunology | 1 (2) |
| Other | 5 (10) |
| Centre status: | |
| Single centre | 7 (13) |
| Multicentre | 45 (87) |
| International | 32 (62) |
| National | 9 (17) |
| Unclear | 4 (8) |
| Leading study centre: | |
| Freiburg | 5 (10) |
| Other | 40 (77) |
| Unclear | 7 (13) |
| Industry funding: | |
| Yes | 36 (69) |
| No | 16 (31) |
| Other funding | |
| Yes | 6 (12) |
| No | 46 (88) |
| Sponsor involved in planning and conduct of trial: | |
| Yes | 32 (62) |
| No | 20 (38) |
| Study design: | |
| Parallel group | 47 (90) |
| Crossover | 5 (10) |
| No of study groups: | |
| 2 | 39 (75) |
| >2 | 13 (25) |
| Sample size: | |
| Range | 10-8300 |
| Median | 220 |