Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39350102›Full record

ArticleBMC medical research methodology2024

The impact of allocation bias on test decisions in clinical trials with multiple endpoints using multiple testing strategies.

Stefanie Schoenen, Nicole Heussen, Johan Verbeeck, Ralf-Dieter Hilgers

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC medical research methodology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Is any research ever truly bias-free? The myth of objectivity in science.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Stefanie SchoenenInstitute of Medical Statistics, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstrasse 19, 52074, Aachen, Germany. stschoenen@ukaachen.de.
Nicole HeussenInstitute of Medical Statistics, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstrasse 19, 52074, Aachen, Germany.
Johan VerbeeckData Science Institute, Hasselt University, Agoralaan, 3590, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
Ralf-Dieter HilgersInstitute of Medical Statistics, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstrasse 19, 52074, Aachen, Germany.

Funding

Horizon 2020 964908
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundConsidering multiple endpoints in clinical trials provide a more comprehensive understanding of treatment effects and may lead to increased power or reduced sample size, which may be beneficial in rare diseases. Besides the small sample sizes, allocation bias is an issue that affects the validity of these trials. We investigate the impact of allocation bias on testing decisions in clinical trials with multiple endpoints and offer a tool for selecting an appropriate randomization procedure (RP).

methodsWe derive a model for quantifying the effect of allocation bias depending on the RP in the case of two-arm parallel group trials with continuous multiple endpoints. We focus on two approaches to analyze multiple endpoints, either the Šidák procedure to show efficacy in at least one endpoint and the all-or-none procedure to show efficacy in all endpoints.

resultsTo evaluate the impact of allocation bias on the test decision we propose a biasing policy for multiple endpoints. The impact of allocation on the test decision is measured by the family-wise error rate of the Šidák procedure and the type I error rate of the all-or-none procedure. Using the biasing policy we derive formulas to calculate these error rates. In simulations we show that, for the Šidák procedure as well as for the all-or-none procedure, allocation bias leads to inflation of the mean family-wise error and mean type I error, respectively. The strength of this inflation is affected by the choice of the RP.

conclusionAllocation bias should be considered during the design phase of a trial to increase validity. The developed methodology is useful for selecting an appropriate RP for a clinical trial with multiple endpoints to minimize allocation bias effects.

Indexed as

BiasAlgorithmsClinical Trials as TopicComputer SimulationEndpoint DeterminationHumansModels, StatisticalRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicResearch DesignSample SizeAllocation biasAll-or-none approachCo-primary endpointsFamily-wise error rateIntersection-union testMultiple endpointsMultiple testingRandomizationŠidákType I error rate

Identifiers

PMID39350102
PMCPMC11441119

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Registered trials

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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.