If you’re looking to learn about the scores of clinical research studies being carried out across the world, ClinicalTrials.gov is the place to go. While many researchers treat it only as a repository to submit required study information, it’s also worth thinking of it as an extensive online library for publicly and privately supported clinical research studies that cover a wide range of diseases and conditions. In fact, as the world’s largest clinical trial registry with summary results, ClinicalTrials.gov lists records for more than 515,000 clinical trials, observational studies, and expanded access programs.
Recently, NIH’s National Library of Medicine, which maintains ClinicalTrials.gov, revamped the website in an effort to make its large swaths of data easily searchable and more user friendly.
I’m Here. Where Do I Start?
ClinicalTrials.gov caters to a range of users from investigators looking to submit their study information or add results at the end of a study, to patients looking to participate in clinical trials, to researchers in search of studies on specific topics. The way you use the website depends on your research needs. (Note that the U.S. government does not review or approve the safety and science of all studies listed on the website.)
To Find a Study: On the homepage, you’ll find numerous ways to start your search including by condition or disease, by treatment, NCT number (the ClinicalTrials.gov identifier number), investigator name, location, and/or study status—such as recruiting or not yet recruiting. You can add more search filters to further refine your search by opening the “More Filters” menu and selecting specific filters from the menu of options.
As part of ongoing website modernization, the website now has an “Expert Search” feature that allows users to perform, edit, and view complex search queries as well as track, save, and edit their query history. The updated version also has color coding on the study status of each study record, making it easier for users to identify which studies are enrolling participants. Similarly, the search results’ card view has been enhanced to improve flow and visibility. Users can also be alerted to study updates by creating an RSS feed for all the studies on the website or for a specific search.
Get tips on how to Set up an RSS feed, Search for Clinical Studies as well as Construct Complex Search Queries.
To Submit a Study: Individuals looking to submit clinical study information will have to sign into the ClinicalTrials.gov Protocol Registration and Results System (PRS), an online tool. ClinicalTrials.gov establishes one PRS account for an organization—such as a company, university, or medical center—and all active investigators from that organization are typically designated as users of that account. Organizations should designate one or more PRS administrators to manage the account and create logins for additional users. Before applying for a PRS account, first check if your organization already has an account. Refer to the Responsible Party section of ClinicalTrials.gov’s FAQ page to determine if you’re the right person to register a study and submit results. Also, read Clinical Trial Reporting Requirements to learn about U.S. legal and policy requirements for submitting study information to ClinicalTrials.gov.
Researchers can also update and edit study records—either all at once or individually—by logging into the ClinicalTrials.gov PRS. Learn more about Updating and Maintaining Records in the PRS User’s Guide.
What Lies Ahead
Some features are still in the works as part of the modernization effort, so it’s worth checking out the Planned Features. For instance, there are plans to develop a map view in search results, which will display a world map with the number of studies matching a user’s search criteria overlaid on the major geographic areas of each continent. While this feature isn’t currently available on ClinicalTrials.gov, users can already view a list of Countries with Studies.
For more information on the modernization effort, check out Modernization Transition Top Questions.