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Holbein B, Rape MT, Hammack BN, Melvin A, Reider C, Knox TA. Institutionally chartered Data and Safety Monitoring Boards: structured approaches to assuring participant safety in clinical research. J Investig Med 2021; 69:1050-1055. [PMID: 34074706 DOI: 10.1136/jim-2021-001779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Data and Safety Monitoring Boards (DSMBs) derived from the need to monitor large federally funded multi-center clinical trials and evolved to include commercial and other large and complex trials. Eventually, academic health centers also created institutionally focused trial monitoring mechanisms. The basic general principles that define traditional DSMBs extend to the institutional level. The primary responsibilities are assuring safety of the participants, preserving the integrity of the trial, and ensuring the reliability of the results. Institutionally chartered DSMBs meet these responsibilities but usually have fewer members, have a structure specific to the needs of the trial, are more focused and/or have different scope reviewing smaller, single site, higher risk, and investigator-initiated studies and are flexible to accommodate institution-specific requirements and approaches. Their purpose is to meet the responsibilities of oversight for safety and data integrity, ensure proper study design, rigor and conduct, as well as provide statistical support appropriate to the setting of the research. Academic health centers should recognize the importance and existence of institution level safety and data monitoring and provide support as much as possible. Investigators should have sufficient resources available to assemble DSMBs. The Clinical and Translational Science Awards Collaborative DSMB Workgroup provides an online manual to assist investigators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blair Holbein
- Population and Data Sciences, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, USA
| | - Marie T Rape
- North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Barbara N Hammack
- Colorado Clinical & Translational Sciences Institute, University of Colorado Denver - Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, USA
| | - Ann Melvin
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease, University of Washington and Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, USA .,Institute of Translational Health Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Carson Reider
- College of Public Health, The Ohio State University OSUMC, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Tamsin A Knox
- Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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