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Clinical Trials for Conception

What You Need to Know Before You Sign Up

By Kelly Burgess

How do the possible risks, side effects and benefits in the study compare with my current treatment?

How might this trial affect my daily life?

How long will the trial last?

Will hospitalization be required?

Who will pay for the experimental treatment?

Will I be reimbursed for other expenses?

What type of long-term follow-up care is part of this study?

How will I know that the experimental treatment is working?

Will results of the trials be provided to me?

Who will be in charge of my care?

Understanding all phases of the clinical trial is called "informed consent," and it's a crucial element of the process of participation.

Danielle Jenkins of McCandless, Pa., didn't really know what to expect when she signed up for a clinical trial studying the effect of acupuncture on infertility at Magee Women's Hospital of Pittsburgh.

"I just thought it would be interesting to see if it helped me get pregnant – I was doing IVF at the time – but it turned out to be a very interesting look at how science and research works," Jenkins says. "It gave me a lot of respect for the process."

Jenkins says that her instructions for the study were very specific. She had to be in a certain place at a certain time, and it was made clear in the beginning that there was no possibility for deviation.

Dr. Uhler says Jenkins' experience was pretty typical of what clinical trials require from their participants. Clinical trials must be very strictly controlled because they need to make sure when they evaluate the data that there are no variations in the testing or delivery methods. If there are, the results can be criticized, or perhaps even completely disregarded, because of those variations.