Kakarla UK, Kim LJ, Chang SW, Theodore N, Spetzler RF Safety and accuracy of bedside external ventricular drain placement. Neurosurgery. 2008 Jul;63(1 Suppl 1):ONS162-6; discussion ONS166-7. doi: 10.1227/01.neu.0000335031.23521.d0.
Khanna RK, Rosenblum ML, Rock JP, Malik GM Prolonged external ventricular drainage with percutaneous long-tunnel ventriculostomies. J Neurosurg. 1995 Nov;83(5):791-4. doi: 10.3171/jns.1995.83.5.0791.
Olson DM, Zomorodi M, Britz GW, Zomorodi AR, Amato A, Graffagnino C Continuous cerebral spinal fluid drainage associated with complications in patients admitted with subarachnoid hemorrhage. J Neurosurg. 2013 Oct;119(4):974-80. doi: 10.3171/2013.6.JNS122403. Epub 2013 Aug 20.
Rahman M, Whiting JH, Fauerbach LL, Archibald L, Friedman WA Reducing ventriculostomy-related infections to near zero: the eliminating ventriculostomy infection study. Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf. 2012 Oct;38(10):459-64. doi: 10.1016/s1553-7250(12)38061-6.
Rosenbaum BP, Vadera S, Kelly ML, Kshettry VR, Weil RJ Ventriculostomy: Frequency, length of stay and in-hospital mortality in the United States of America, 1988-2010. J Clin Neurosci. 2014 Apr;21(4):623-32. doi: 10.1016/j.jocn.2013.09.001.
Tse Ts, Cheng K, Wong K, Pang K, Wong C Ventriculostomy and Infection: A 4-year-review in a local hospital. Surg Neurol Int. 2010 Sep 9;1:47. doi: 10.4103/2152-7806.69033.
A Comparison of External Ventricular Drain Catheter Diameter on Occlusion and Replacement: A Randomized Trial
Interventional studies are often prospective and are specifically tailored to evaluate direct impacts of treatment or preventive measures on disease.
Observational studies are often retrospective and are used to assess potential causation in exposure-outcome relationships and therefore influence preventive methods.
Expanded access is a means by which manufacturers make investigational new drugs available, under certain circumstances, to treat a patient(s) with a serious disease or condition who cannot participate in a controlled clinical trial.
Clinical trials are conducted in a series of steps, called phases - each phase is designed to answer a separate research question.
Phase 1: Researchers test a new drug or treatment in a small group of people for the first time to evaluate its safety, determine a safe dosage range, and identify side effects.
Phase 2: The drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people to see if it is effective and to further evaluate its safety.
Phase 3: The drug or treatment is given to large groups of people to confirm its effectiveness, monitor side effects, compare it to commonly used treatments, and collect information that will allow the drug or treatment to be used safely.
Phase 4: Studies are done after the drug or treatment has been marketed to gather information on the drug's effect in various populations and any side effects associated with long-term use.
