A clinical trial is an experiment carried out by large pharmaceutical companies to test new drugs and other medical products. The aim is that if these medicines are safe to be used, they can then be sold for people who need them to help with their condition. It is the company that will pay for all the medical costs involved, but there are various trials that can take place, depending on the needs of the patient or the trial itself. If the medical costs of one patient are very low, a trial can be set up to test this drug on a smaller group of people. Find out more about the experience of Clinical Trial Volunteers at a site like Trials 4 Us, who are seeking Clinical Trial Volunteers

There are different types of clinical trials. Some will be double blind, meaning that the people taking part and the researchers will not know whether they are getting the new medication or a placebo instead. Other clinical trials are known as single blind, meaning that there is only one group of people taking the new drug and another is unaware of what they are taking. The primary advantage of this type of trial is that the researcher knows what participants have been given.

Sometimes clinical trials are done for reasons unrelated to a new medication. Sometimes a new technique is tried, for example, taking a new kind of MRI scan to see if it is effective. Other kinds of studies could be to test the effect of exercise on the heart. There are a number of different kinds of clinical trials, and they can last from a few days to many months. They can help greatly with medical research.