Ker CR, Lin KL, Loo ZX, Juan YS, Long CY Comparison of Uphold(TM) Vaginal Mesh Procedure with Hysterectomy or Uterine Preservation for the Treatment of Pelvic Organ Prolapse. Sci Rep. 2018 Jun 21;8(1):9438. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-27765-8.
Long CY, Hsu CS, Wu CH, Liu CM, Wang CL, Tsai EM Three-year outcome of transvaginal mesh repair for the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2012 Mar;161(1):105-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2011.12.007. Epub 2012 Jan 9.
Long CY, Wang CL, Ker CR, Juan YS, Tsai EM, Lin KL Laparoscopic Organopexy with Non-mesh Genital (LONG) Suspension: A Novel Uterine Preservation Procedure for the Treatment of Apical Prolapse. Sci Rep. 2018 Mar 20;8(1):4872. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-23285-7.
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.
