How do we know a treatment is good enough? A survey of non-inferiority trials

Table 1 Trial and responder’s characteristics

		Frequency (%) (N = 41)
Role	Chief investigator	18 (43.9%)
	Clinical researcher	3 (7.3%)
	Statistician	19 (46.4%)
	Trial manager	1 (2.4%)
Year	2006–2011	8 (19.5%)
	2012–2017	14 (34.2%)
	2018–2022	17 (41.5%)
	Year not available^a	2 (4.9%)
Current stage of trial	Design	2 (4.9%)
	Recruitment	13 (31.7%)
	Data collection	3 (7.3%)
	Data analysis and interpretation	1 (2.4%)
	Reporting research findings	3 (7.3%)
	Completed	18 (43.9%)
	Not applicable	1 (2.4%)
Type of intervention	Pharmacological	18 (43.9%)
	Non-pharmacological	21 (51.2%)
	Both	2 (4.9%)
Arms	Two	37(90.3%)
Arms	Three	3 (7.3%)
	Four	1 (2.4%)
Primary outcome^b	Disease-specific quality of life	1 (2.4%)
	Mortality	1 (2.4%)
	Clinical outcome	29 (70.7%)
	Adverse effect	2 (4.9%)
	Patient reported outcome	8 (19.5%)
	Public health outcome	3 (7.3%)

^aTwo trials were pre-registration status and did not have a starting year
^bMore than one option may have been chosen; clinical outcomes include a grouping of “clinical functional outcomes,” and “other” outcomes classified as clinical by the study team (e.g. symptom resolution reported by clinicians)”

ISSN: 1745-6215