The American review of respiratory disease
-
Am. Rev. Respir. Dis. · Oct 1991
Clinical usefulness of n-of-1 randomized controlled trials in patients with nonreversible chronic airflow limitation.
To determine if n-of-1 randomized controlled trials (n-of-1 RCT) are useful in the care of patients with nonreversible chronic airflow limitation (CAL). Individual trials had a double-blind, randomized, multiple crossover design. Patients with CAL were recruited from several respirology practices. ⋯ After 8 n-of-1 RCT (44% of all completed, or 31% of all trials) clinicians decided to stop the drug, which would otherwise have been continued indefinitely. In all 17 of the clinically definite n-of-1 RCT, the management decision that followed the trial was still being adhered to 40 months (on average) after completion of the trial. The results support the feasibility and usefulness of n-of-1 RCT in respirology practice.