ArticleBMJ global health2023
'Being disabled' as an exclusion criterion for clinical trials: a scoping review.
Article in BMJ global health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Prevalence and determinants of modern contraception use among persons with disabilities in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH · 2025Pooled it
- Participation of children with obstructive sleep apnea in clinical trials: a systematic review of barriers and interventions.Translational pediatrics · 2026Review
- Exploring 24-h movement behaviors in preschool children with developmental disabilities: a scoping review.Journal of activity, sedentary and sleep behaviors · 2026Review
- Co-Creation of a Study Protocol to Assess the Effect of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in the Management of Fatigue in Children and Young People With Acquired Brain Injury (Fatiguebrain-tDCS).Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2026Article
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- Article
- Equitable inclusion of people with disabilities in clinical trials: a scoping review.BMJ open · 2026Article
- Insights from the development of an online toolkit to promote community-engaged substance use research in the Southwest Borderlands Region.Journal of clinical and translational science · 2026Article
- Researchers' roadblocks to including people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (DD) in research: Translational science and I/DD program leaders insights.Journal of clinical and translational science · 2026Article
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Biomedical Research and Publishing.Indian journal of psychological medicine · 2026Article
- Exclusion of people from oncology clinical trials based on functional status.Clinical trials (London, England) · 2025Article
- Diversity and Inclusion Within Datasets in Heart Failure: A Systematic Review.JACC. Advances · 2025Article
- A protocol for a wait list control trial of an intervention to improve pain and depressive symptoms among middle-aged and older women living with disabilities.Contemporary clinical trials · 2025Article
- Are school-based violence prevention interventions inclusive and effective for children with disabilities? A systematic review of global evidence.EClinicalMedicine · 2025Article
- Breaking barriers: a commentary on research gaps in cancer and depression among individuals with intellectual disabilities.International journal for equity in health · 2025Article
- Reducing translational science roadblocks to disability research.Journal of clinical and translational science · 2025Article
- Disability inclusion in national surveys.Health affairs scholar · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPeople with disabilities (PWDs) are often excluded from biomedical research, but comprehensive data regarding their participation in clinical trials are not available. The objective of this study was to assess the rates of exclusion of PWDs from recent medical scientific research.
methodsThe protocol of the study was designed according to PRISMA-ScR (PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines. All completed interventional clinical trials registered on ClinicalTrials.gov between 2010 and 2020 regarding the 10 leading causes of global disability-adjusted life-years according to the Global Burden of Disease Study were analysed. An exclusion criterion from the study was considered explicit if it could be associated with one of the following seven categories: disability, physical impairment, cognitive impairment, behavioural or psychiatric disorders, language and communication impairment, sensory impairment. Comorbidities not more clearly defined and researcher discretion regarding exclusion of study participants were considered to be 'implicit exclusion criteria'. We assessed the appropriateness of explicit exclusion criteria in relation to the primary objectives of the trials and labelled them as 'absolute', 'relative' or 'questionable'.
resultsThe total number of trials analysed was 2710; 170 were paediatric trials (6.3%), 2374 were adult trials (87.6%) and 166 were trials including subjects of all ages (6.1%). Explicit exclusion criteria were found in 958 trials (35.3%). The disability category most frequently excluded was behavioural or psychiatric disorders, present in 588 trials (61.4%). In only 3% and 1% of the trials, the exclusion criteria were considered either 'absolute' or 'questionable', while in 96% the exclusion criteria were judged as 'relative'. Implicit exclusion criteria were present in 1205 trials (44.5%).
conclusionsThis study highlights the high rate of exclusion of PWDs from biomedical research and the widespread use of ill-defined exclusion criteria in clinical trials. It underscores the importance of more inclusive study designs so that PWDs can become active participants in research.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.