U.S. patent application number 16/007633 was filed with the patent office on 2018-12-27 for endpoint development process.
The applicant listed for this patent is eResearchTechnology, Inc.. Invention is credited to Chad GWALTNEY, Jean PATY, Alan SHIELDS, Brian TIPLADY.
Application Number | 20180374560 16/007633 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41569447 |
Filed Date | 2018-12-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180374560 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
PATY; Jean ; et al. |
December 27, 2018 |
ENDPOINT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
Abstract
A system for developing and producing clinical endpoints based
on patient reported outcome data utilizing algorithms to generate
decision rules to evaluate patient reported outcome type
questionnaire is provided. The questionnaires can include
health-related quality of life questionnaires and can predict the
reliability of endpoints in supporting one or more medical labeling
claims.
Inventors: |
PATY; Jean; (Pittsburgh,
PA) ; SHIELDS; Alan; (Johnson City, TN) ;
GWALTNEY; Chad; (Westerly, RI) ; TIPLADY; Brian;
(Edinburgh, GB) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
eResearchTechnology, Inc. |
Philadelphia |
PA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
41569447 |
Appl. No.: |
16/007633 |
Filed: |
June 13, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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13670151 |
Nov 6, 2012 |
10025910 |
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16007633 |
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12509318 |
Jul 24, 2009 |
8380531 |
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13670151 |
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61083575 |
Jul 25, 2008 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 19/00 20130101;
G06Q 50/22 20130101; G16H 10/20 20180101; G06Q 10/00 20130101; G06Q
30/0203 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G16H 10/20 20060101
G16H010/20; G06F 19/00 20060101 G06F019/00; G06Q 10/00 20060101
G06Q010/00; G06Q 30/02 20060101 G06Q030/02; G06Q 50/22 20060101
G06Q050/22 |
Claims
1-35. (canceled)
36. A method for configuring a prompting method of electronic
devices in a clinical trial, said method comprising: a. prompting,
by a first electronic device using a first prompting method of said
electronic device, a first subject in a trial to input a response;
b. automatically recording said first subject's response to said
first prompting method and storing first metadata indicating an
amount of time elapsed between said first prompting and said
response to said first prompting method, wherein said recording and
storing occurs on said electronic device; c. prompting, by a second
electronic device using a second prompting method of said second
electronic device, a second subject to input a response, wherein
said first prompting method and said second prompting method are
different; d. automatically recording said second subject's
response to said second prompting method and storing second
metadata indicating an amount of time elapsed between said second
prompting and said response to said second prompting method; e.
analyzing, by one or more electronic devices, said first metadata
and said second metadata to evaluate effectiveness of said first
prompting method and said second prompting method; and f. selecting
said first prompting method or said second prompting method for use
during a subsequent clinical trial based on said analyzing said
first metadata and said second metadata.
37. The method of claim 36, wherein said first prompting method or
said second prompting method is a random prompting method.
38. The method of claim 36, wherein said first prompting method or
said second prompting method is a scheduled prompting method.
39. The method of claim 36, wherein said first prompting method or
said second prompting method comprises beeping, a voice, music, or
a vibration.
40. The method of claim 36, wherein said trial is a pilot
trial.
41. A method for modifying operation of a portable electronic
device in a clinical trial based on characteristics of a subject,
said method comprising: a. prompting, by a first portable
electronic device using a prompting method of said first portable
electronic device, a subject in a trial to input a response, b.
automatically recording said subject's response to said prompting
method and storing metadata comprising data related to said
response to said prompting method, wherein said recording and
storing occurs on said first portable electronic device; c.
analyzing said metadata; and d. customizing a second portable
electronic device for use in a clinical trial based on said
analyzing, wherein said customizing comprises disabling or
augmenting one or more physical features of said second portable
electronic device based on said characteristics of said
subject.
42. The method of claim 41, wherein said prompting method is a
scheduled prompting method.
43. The method of claim 41, wherein said prompting method is a
random prompting method.
44. The method of claim 41, wherein said prompting method comprises
beeping, a voice, music, or a vibration.
45. The method of claim 41, wherein said metadata comprises
information about patient-reported outcome (PRO) data.
46. The method of claim 41, wherein said physical features
comprises a keyboard, display, communications ability or security
measures.
47. The method of claim 41, wherein said characteristics comprises
literacy, cognitive responsiveness or age.
48. The method of claim 41, wherein said trial is a pilot trial.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 13/670,151, filed on Nov. 6, 2012 which claims
the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/509,318, filed
on Jul. 24, 2009, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 61/083,575, filed Jul. 25, 2008, which applications
are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] A clinical trial is a study following a pre-designed
protocol to consider the effectiveness of a treatment for
biomedical or health-related benefit in humans Most clinical trials
are either interventional or observational types of studies. In
interventional studies, an investigator measures an outcome of an
intervention, usually in the form of a treatment given to a group
of subjects. In observational studies, an investigator would record
what he or she observes from the subjects subjected to a study
protocol.
[0003] In general, there are five different types of trials.
Treatment trials test for the effectiveness of experimental
treatments, such as new combinations of drugs, or new approaches to
surgical or radiological method. On the other hand, prevention
trials attempt to find better ways to prevent disease in people who
have not experienced the disease. Another focus of a prevention
trial is to prevent the disease from returning in subjects
experienced with the disease. An exemplary approach is a vaccine
trial. Prevention trials can use medicines, vitamins, minerals, or
lifestyle changes. Diagnostic trials are studies designed to find
more convenient, accurate, easily accessible, and rapid procedures
for the diagnosis of a disease or condition. Screening trials focus
on better ways to aid earlier and accurate detection of a disease
or a health conditions. Lastly, quality of life trials, also called
supportive care trials, inquire into ways to improve comfort and
the quality of life for subject with a chronic disease.
[0004] A clinical protocol is a pre-designed, written guideline
detailing the type, objective, and requirements (such as devices,
supportive infrastructure, and subject characteristics) of a
clinical trial, and the clinical trial endpoints. A clinical trial
endpoint can include a state of a disease, a symptom, or a clinical
sign that mirrors the target goal of a trial. In a typical setting,
what are actually measured in a clinical trial are clinical trial
endpoints. Combined results obtained from a variety of measured
clinical trial endpoints are often evaluated in terms of their
support of one or more clinical objectives or goals. The use of
clinical trial endpoints such as tumor size, physiological data,
vital signs associated with a state of healthiness or expression of
well-being enable an investigator to quantitatively measure the
effectiveness of a medical product to the stated goal of a trial.
For example, chest pain can be used as a clinical trial endpoint in
a clinical trial investigating the ability of a medical product to
prevent a heart attack. When a subject is enrolled in the clinical
trial and a medical product over a period of time, the subject can
report back to an investigator any episodes of chest pain over the
course of the trial. The number of subjects reporting chest pain
and/or the number of incidences of chest pain in each subject can
be quantified and expressed as a fraction to the entire population
of subjects enrolled in the clinical trial. In some examples a
medical product is administered to a first group of subjects and a
placebo is administered to a second group of subjects. The results
observed in the group of subjects administered a medical product
can be compared to the results in the observed in the group of
subjects administered a placebo--to determine if there is a
causative relationship between the medical intervention and the
clinical trial endpoint.
[0005] A surrogate endpoint is a measure of an effect of a certain
treatment that can correlate with a clinical endpoint but does not
necessarily have a guaranteed relationship. The National Institutes
of Health defines a surrogate endpoint as a biomarker intended to
substitute for a clinical endpoint. Surrogate markers are used when
the primary endpoint is not desirable, such as death, or very
difficult to attain and thus making it impractical to conduct a
clinical trial to gather a statistically significant number of
clinical endpoints. An example of a surrogate endpoint is the level
of cholesterol in a clinical trial testing a medical product in a
group of patients with cardiovascular disorder. While above normal
cholesterol levels in a subject can increase the chances of a
cardiovascular disorder, the relationship is not an absolute
indicator of risk as some subjects with above normal levels of
cholesterol do not develop cardiovascular disorder or show signs of
heart disease.
[0006] Some clinical trial endpoints are qualitative and subjective
indicators. In a clinical trial, subjective indications can be
quantified by assigning numeric values to indicate the intensity of
pain or experience. The measurement of a subjective indication is a
difficult undertaking as it can be affected by subtle differences
in the design of the clinical trial. For example, when a subject is
posed the question "do you experience pain", the answer can be
markedly affected by the manner in which the question is presented.
For example, when a person is given a range of scores to choose in
response to a question of severity of pain, the answer provided can
be affected by environmental cues, such as whether or not the
question is presented on a graphical display or is asked by a
person. Responses can also be affected by variables such as the
color or size of a screen display. The characteristics of the
person, such as gender, age, friendliness, profession (trained
interviewer, psychiatrist, clinician, health care administrator,
etc); presenting the question can also affect the answers provided.
Other variables that can affect an answer include the time of the
question, the room environment (closed, open), or whether a
multiple choice or a numeric scale is used by a subject to select
an answer.
[0007] A clinical trial endpoint can reliably predict the clinical
outcome of a subject. Under some conditions, satisfying the
clinical trial endpoint indicates that a desired outcome has been
successfully reached. Multiple clinical trial endpoints in a trial
can be combined to corroborate an indication that a clinical trial
goal is met by a medical product. Careful clinical trial design
allows the use of subjective indications, to be employed in a
clinical trial to validate the goal of the trial.
[0008] In the past, subjective indications in a clinical setting
have generally been recorded by clinicians or caregivers. However,
the experiences recited by a subject is filtered and rephrased by
the person administering the interview. Recently, the filtering was
recognized as one of the factors contributing to the potential
unreliability of subjective indications as clinical endpoints.
Therefore, modern clinical trials have begun to develop better ways
to produce more comprehensive pictures of subjective indications
such as the status of a subject in terms of their symptoms and the
impact of those symptoms on the subject's daily life.
[0009] Patient-reported outcome (PRO) is a measurement of an aspect
of a subject's health status that comes directly from the subject
(i.e., without the interpretation of the subject's responses by a
physician or anyone else). A PRO instrument can be used to obtain a
measurement by questionnaire, diary, or other forms of media
allowing verbal or written expression of health status. In one
embodiment, a health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire
is a PRO instrument and is used to evaluate physical, social,
psychological functioning of a subject.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] In one aspect of the invention a method is provided for
clinical trial endpoint development comprising: administering one
or more questions to a subject who is administered a medical
product or a placebo, wherein said one or more questions are
administered to said subject by a portable electronic device,
wherein said device records data about said subject's response to
said one or more questions; analyzing said data; developing one or
more clinical trial endpoints based on said analysis of said data;
and, using said one or more clinical trial endpoints in a clinical
trial as an indicator to determine when one or more goals of said
clinical trial is reached. In one embodiment the step of
administering a questionnaire to a subject is part of a pilot
trial. In another embodiment analyzing said data is performed on
said portable electronic device. In another embodiment analyzing
said data comprises sending said data to a data analysis system,
wherein said data is analyzed. In another embodiment the clinical
trial tests a medical product or a placebo on a human subject. In
another embodiment, the developing comprises modifying said
questionnaire based on said evaluation of data and repeating the
first and second steps. In another embodiment, the analyzing
comprises psychometric validation of said data. In another
embodiment the one or more questions comprises at least one a
health-related quality of life (HRQOL) question. In another
embodiment, the administering comprises prompting said subject to
answer said one or more questions. In another embodiment, the
prompting lasts for the duration of said clinical trial. In another
embodiment, the wherein prompting occurs at a pre-scheduled time or
a random time. In another embodiment the data is sent to the data
analysis system by a wireless connection or wired connection. In
another embodiment the data comprises information on the time said
subject responds to said one ore more questions, the date said
subject responds to said one ore more questions, or the location of
said portable electronic device when said subject responds to said
one ore more questions. In another embodiment one of said one or
more goals of said clinical trial is to assess a label claim of a
medical product. In another embodiment the second step comprises
analyzing said data for one or more evaluative indicators. In
another embodiment analyzing comprises a statistical hypothesis
test of said evaluative indicators. In another embodiment the
statistical hypothesis test is a t-test or a probability value
test. In another embodiment the data comprises patient-reported
outcome (PRO) data or metadata.
[0011] In another aspect of the invention a method is provided for
developing a questionnaire for use in a clinical trial comprising:
administering one or more questions to a subject who is
administered a medical product or a placebo and recording said
subject's response to said one or more questions as a first set of
data; analyzing said first set of data to determine the validity or
reliability of said question; accepting said question for
collection in step e), or modifying said question and providing it
again in the first step; collecting said one or more questions into
a questionnaire; administering said questionnaire to a subject in a
clinical trial, wherein said administering is by a portable
electronic device, wherein said portable electronic device records
said subject in a clinical trial's response as a second set of
data; analyzing said second set of data to determine if a
pre-determined clinical trial endpoint has been reached in said
clinical trial. In one embodiment, the questionnaire comprises one
or more HRQOL questions. In another embodiment, the analyzing step
comprises analyzing said data for one or more evaluative
indicators. In another embodiment, the first or second set of data
comprises PRO data or metadata.
[0012] In another aspect of the invention a computer program
product is provided comprising a computer readable medium having
computer program logic encoded thereon for enabling a processor to
develop a clinical trial endpoint comprising: a receiving procedure
that enables a processor to receive data from a portable electronic
device, wherein said data comprises a response to one or more
questions responded to by a subject who was administered a medical
product or a placebo, wherein said one or more questions are
administered to said subject by said portable electronic device; an
analyzing procedure to analyze said data; an output procedure to
provide one or more clinical trial endpoints based on said analysis
of said data. In one embodiment, the analyzing step comprises
analyzing said data for one or more evaluative indicators. In
another embodiment, the computer program product of claim 23,
wherein said data comprises PRO data or metadata.
[0013] In another aspect of the invention a computer system for
clinical trial endpoint development is provided, comprising a
computer readable medium having computer program logic encoded
thereon, wherein said computer program logic comprises
instructions, which comprise: input instructions for receiving data
from a portable electronic device, wherein said data comprises a
response to one or more questions responded to by a subject who was
administered a medical product or a placebo, wherein said one or
more questions are administered to said subject by said portable
electronic device; analysis instructions for analyzing said data;
output instructions for providing one or more clinical trial
endpoints based on said analysis of said data. In one embodiment,
the analyzing step comprises analyzing said data for one or more
evaluative indicators. In one another embodiment, the data
comprises PRO data or metadata. In another embodiment, the computer
system further comprises instructions to send information to said
portable electronic device, wherein said computer system is remote
from said portable electronic device. In one embodiment, the
information comprises one or more questions.
[0014] In another aspect of the invention a computer program
product is provided comprising a computer readable medium having
computer program logic encoded thereon for enabling a processor to
develop a questionnaire for use in a clinical trial comprising: a
receiving procedure that enables a processor to receive data from a
portable electronic device, wherein said data comprises a response
to one or more questions responded to by a subject who was
administered a medical product or a placebo; an analyzing procedure
to analyze said data to determine the validity or reliability of
said question, wherein said procedure collects a question
determined to be valid or reliable and outputs them for use in a
clinical trial questionnaire or said procedure modifies a question
determined to be invalid or unreliable and outputs them for
administration to a subject who is administered a medical product
or a placebo; an output procedure to provide a validated or
reliable question for use in a clinical trial or to provide a
modified question to a subject who is administered a medical
product or a placebo. In one embodiment, the analyzing step
comprises analyzing said data for one or more evaluative
indicators. In another embodiment, the data comprises PRO data or
metadata.
[0015] In another aspect of the invention a computer system is
provided for providing a questionnaire for use in a clinical trial
comprising a computer readable medium having computer program logic
encoded thereon, wherein said computer program logic comprises
instructions, which comprise: input instructions for receiving data
from a portable electronic device, wherein said data comprises a
response to one or more questions responded to by a subject who is
administered a medical product or a placebo; analysis instructions
for analyzing data to determine the validity or reliability of said
question, wherein said procedure collects a question determined to
be valid or reliable and outputs them for use in a clinical trial
questionnaire or said procedure modifies a question determined to
be invalid or unreliable and outputs them for administration to a
subject who is administered a medical product or a placebo; output
instructions to provide a validated or reliable question for use in
a clinical trial or to provide a modified question to a subject who
is administered a medical product or a placebo. In one embodiment,
the data comprises PRO data or metadata.
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
[0016] All publications, patents, and patent applications mentioned
in this specification are herein incorporated by reference in their
entirety to the same extent as if each individual publication,
patent, or patent application was specifically and individually
indicated to be incorporated by reference.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] The novel features of the invention are set forth with
particularity in the appended claims. A better understanding of the
features and advantages of the present invention will be obtained
by reference to the following detailed description that sets forth
illustrative embodiments, in which the principles of the invention
are utilized, and the accompanying drawings of which:
[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates a system for developing a PRO-data based
clinical trial endpoint.
[0019] FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of designing HQRL question
for a use in a clinical trial employing PRO-data collection for
constructing a clinical trial endpoint.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0020] One aspect of the invention is directed to devices and
methods for assessing patient reported outcome (PRO) data from a
portable electronic device to support a label claim for a medical
product. Generally, such a label claim must be approved by a
regulatory agency, such as the United States Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) or evaluated by a scientific agency, such as
the European Medicines Agency (EMA). In this context, a label claim
can be a statement of a health benefit of a medical product or
comparative safety advantage. Normally, evidence or data must be
submitted to the FDA to support a label claim. Often, a clinical
trial is designed to test and collect evidence in support of a
label claim that is made for a medical product. PRO data can be
collected and used to support medical labeling claims. In one
embodiment, a clinical trial endpoint based on PRO data validated
by the methods disclosed herein can be used in support of medical
product label claims.
Definitions
[0021] A "clinical endpoint" as used herein, refers to occurrence
of, or change in, a disease, a condition, a syndrome, a symptom, a
sign or a laboratory measurement in a subject that constitutes one
of the target outcomes of a clinical trial.
[0022] A "clinical trial" as used herein, refers to an experimental
trial or test on one or more subjects designed to determine the
safety, efficacy, or basis of a label claim for a medical product.
A clinical trial includes administering a medical product or a
placebo to one or more subjects.
[0023] A "clinical trial endpoint" as used herein, includes both a
clinical endpoint and a surrogate endpoint.
[0024] An "evaluative indicator" as used herein, includes
measurements of the reliability or validity of the PRO data.
Reliability can be specified as internal consistency, test-retest,
and parallel forms reliability. Reliability can be expressed as a
reliability coefficient, such as but not limited to, Cronbach's
alpha, intra-class correlation, or Pearson and Spearman
correlation. Validity can be specified as content and
criterion-related or construct validity. Validity can be expressed
as a validity coefficient, such as, but not limited to a Pearson
correlation coefficient. Sensitivity and responsiveness to change
estimates can also be validity coefficients. They can be expressed
as an effect size or another estimate known in that arts that
characterizes the extent to which scores produced by a PRO
instrument change when the underlying concept also changes, or in
response to an effective treatment.
[0025] A "computer-executable instruction" as used herein, refers
to an instruction or a set of instructions able to operate a
computer processor to achieve a desired functional result. The
desired functional result can be simple, such as the storage of a
value in memory, or complex, such as an invocation of an advanced
programming interface (API) call that produces sophisticated
functionality. The instruction set can be any suitable
processor-executable instruction set, including (without
limitation) a native machine architecture language, machine
language, Java, JavaScript, BASIC, Visual BASIC, C, C++, C#,
FORTRAN, Perl, a command shell scripting language, etc. The
instruction set can be declarative, such as HTML or XTML;
imperative, such as C; a hybrid language; another type of
instruction set; etc. The instruction set can be fully compiled,
such as into a machine-executable binary; partially compiled into
an intermediate language that is subsequently fully compiled;
interpreted from text, etc. The instruction can be executed
natively on a processor; through a parser, advanced programming
interface (API), or in a virtual machine; within another
application or process, such as a web browser; etc. Any instruction
can be used as long as the instruction is able to operate a
computer to achieve the desired functional result.
[0026] A "label claim" as used herein, is a claim made regarding a
medical product that is subject to regulatory approval by a
government agency (such as the FDA) or evaluation by a government
agency (such as the EMA), and includes, but is not limited to, an
efficacy claim, a safety claim, a toxicity claim, a treatment
claim, a health claim, a nutritional claim or a structure/function
claim. A "label claim" can appear in any section of a medical
product's packaging, advertising or other literature associated
with the medical product.
[0027] A "medical product" as used herein, includes, but is not
limited to, a drug, a biologic, a medical device (including
surgical intervention), a dietary supplement or a cosmetic that is
intended to have a human or veterinary use. A medical product
includes a product intended to treat or prevent a disease,
condition, syndrome or symptom. A medical product also includes a
product intended to treat a sick, injured, or wounded human or
non-human animal A medical product also includes a product intended
to improve a subject's health, wellbeing, state of mind or
appearance. A medical product includes a pharmacologically active
compound, an implantable device and a surgical procedure.
[0028] "Metadata" as used herein, refers to data about PRO data or
a subject's use of a PRO device. Metadata can include information
on when (time or date) a subject completed a question, the amount
of time a subject took to complete a question, the length of a
delay before responding to a prompt to answer a question, the
length of time between answering questions the number of times a
subject changed an answer for a question, the content of a
preliminary answer to a question where the answer was later
changed, the physical location of the PRO device when a subject
answered a question.
[0029] A "patient" as used herein, is a human individual with a
disease, condition, syndrome or symptom, or who is sick, injured,
or wounded.
[0030] A "placebo" as used herein, is a substance, device or
procedure that is objectively without specific activity for the
disease, condition, syndrome or symptom being treated. A placebo
includes a compound that is pharmacologically inert or a sham
surgical procedure.
[0031] A "PRO device" as used herein, is a device which is used to
administer a PRO instrument to a subject to acquire PRO data or
metadata. A PRO device can be a portable electronic device or a
fixed electronic device such as a desktop computer or work station
terminal.
[0032] A "PRO instrument" as used herein, comprises a
questionnaire, diary, or other form of media that can be used to
obtain verbal, written, typed or tactile PRO data from a subject. A
PRO instrument can be a health-related quality of life (HRQOL)
questionnaire. A PRO instrument can be used to evaluate the
physical, social, or psychological state of a subject. A PRO
instrument can be designed to include one or more questions that
have been vetted to optimize the form (e.g., graphical, textual or
a combination thereof), phrasing or timing of the question to a
subject in order to acquire PRO data that is more likely to be
valid as compared to data acquired from a non-vetted question. A
PRO instrument can be encoded as a computer-executable instruction
to be performed on a PRO device.
[0033] "PRO data" as used herein, is patient reported outcome data
that is acquired from a subject who is or was a participant in a
clinical trial of a medical product. The PRO data can be obtained
directly from the subject or from a subject's surrogate (such as in
instances where a subject is unable to directly provide some or all
of the data). PRO data includes a spontaneous expression by a
subject about his or her health, well being, psychological state,
appearance, or functionality, or a response to a query to a subject
about his or her health, well being, psychological state,
appearance, or functionality. PRO data includes information such as
PRO concepts.
[0034] A "portable electronic device" used herein refers to any
electronic device that can be adapted for use by a subject and/or
clinical staff for viewing and/or inputting information.
Preferably, the portable electronic device will also have a visual,
audible or tactile alarm to gain the attention of a subject. For
example, a pager, cell phone or a personal digital assistant (PDA)
having a vibration alarm can be used as a portable electronic
device. Further examples include but are not limited to: a pager, a
cell phone (including a smart phone) or a PDA with audible alarms
or text messaging capabilities, a laptop computer, or a net book
computer. A portable electronic device can be a handheld
computational device provided with a display, a data input feature
(such as a touch-sensitive screen or buttons, e.g. a keyboard) to
enable a subject to respond to a question posed on the display or
speaker, or to input unsolicited information. Examples of such
portable electronic devices include, but are not limited to, a
Blackberry by Research in Motion Ltd., a Palm Pilot by Palm, Inc or
a Windows-based device running an operating system from Microsoft
Corporation. The portable electronic device can be adapted to
communicate with at least one other computer via a wired connection
or a wireless connection, including the use of WiFi, a cellular
network, a modem or a network (such as a local area network) or the
Internet.
[0035] A "subject" as used herein, includes a patient that can be
treated or diagnosed with a medical product. The term "subject"
includes a human individual who is free of a disease, condition,
syndrome or symptom and is being administered a prophylactic
medical product in order to prevent the occurrence of the disease,
condition, syndrome or symptom. The term "subject" includes a human
individual who is being administered a medical product in order to
benefit the individual's, health, wellbeing, state of mind or
appearance.
[0036] A "surrogate endpoint" as used herein, is a measure of an
effect of a medical product in a clinical trial on a human or
non-human subject that correlates with a real clinical endpoint.
The surrogate endpoint can be the presence, absence or change in
the level of a biomarker.
[0037] In one embodiment, a method is provided is provided for
analyzing patient reported outcome (PRO) data for compliance with
FDA-approved guidelines for a clinical trial. In another
embodiment, a method is provided is provided for analyzing patient
reported outcome (PRO) data obtained from a subject in a clinical
trial to determine if one or more clinical trial endpoints has been
reached. In one embodiment the clinical trial is designed to test a
medical product's label claim. In one embodiment when the one or
more clinical trial endpoints is reached, it is used to
substantiate a medical product label claim.
[0038] In one embodiment, a computer (e.g., a portable electronic
device, a server, computer workstation or a desktop computer)
comprising a processor-executable instruction is provided for
analysis of PRO data or metadata to determine compliance with
FDA-approved guidelines for a clinical trial. In another
embodiment, a computer (e.g., a portable electronic device, a
server or a desktop computer) comprising a processor-executable
instruction for analysis of PRO data or metadata to design one or
more clinical trial endpoints. In one embodiment the clinical trial
endpoint is designed to substantiate a medical product's label
claim. A clinical trial can be designed to obtain data related to
one or more specific clinical trial endpoints. Clinical trial
endpoints that are based on PRO data can be influenced by the
clinical settings in which PRO data or metadata are collected. In
one embodiment, a clinical trial endpoint is identified that serves
as a valid indicator of the outcome of a clinical trial by taking
into consideration the clinical setting. A clinical setting can
influence a clinical trial endpoint. In one embodiment, a clinical
trial is designed so that the assessment of PRO data-based clinical
trial endpoints is minimally influenced by the clinical setting in
which the clinical trial occurs. This can provide for better PRO
data to be used to support one or more medical label claims.
[0039] In one embodiment, a clinical trial is completed when a
specific clinical trial goal is met. In another embodiment a
clinical trial results can show support for a medical product's
label claim by meeting a specific clinical trial goal or clinical
measurement. These clinical trial goals are also known as
"concepts" (i.e., the characteristic or outcome) that is to be met.
In one embodiment a clinical trial ends when a statistically
significant number of subjects reach a clinical goal. In another
embodiment a clinical trial has multiple phase with one or more
goals for each phase. A phase ends when a statistically significant
number of subjects reach a clinical goal, however the larger
multi-phase clinical trial can continue.
[0040] In one embodiment a label claim can be substantiated when
all concepts determined to be relevant for the label claim are
articulated and supported by evidence obtained during the clinical
trial (such as PRO data or metadata). Furthermore, concepts can be
comprised of one or more domains.
[0041] A "domain" is a component of a concept. A domain can address
a specific aspect of a label claim. A physical domain addresses
matters of physical nature. An emotional domain addresses matters
of emotional nature. Other examples are psychological,
physiological, behavioral, or social domains Some concepts are
single-domain concepts. Most concepts addressing a symptom are
single-domain concepts. Other concepts, such as health-related
quality of life concepts, are multi-domain concepts. In one
embodiment, a multi-domain concept can be satisfied by answering
questions of a physiological domain, such as objective indicia of
metabolic change or measurable change of a tumor size, but also
answering questions of an emotional domain such as "are you feeling
better than before the treatment was started?".
[0042] A clinical trial endpoint can be an enunciation of a
concept. In one embodiment, if a concept is defined as pain relief,
a clinical trial endpoint articulates the concept in a measurable
term by employing a scale or a range to describe what is considered
as relief of pain. For example, when pain relief is defined as a
number 5 on a 0 to 10 scale (where 0 equals no pain and 10 is
intolerable pain), a subject who is scoring 5 or who provides PRO
data indicating his or her pain level is at a 5, can be considered
as evidence the clinical trial endpoint has been achieved.
[0043] In one embodiment, a method is provided for developing
PRO-data based clinical trial endpoints that exhibit statistically
significant correlative power to the goal of a clinical trial. A
result is called statistically significant if it is unlikely to
have occurred by chance. The significance level of a test is a
traditional statistical hypothesis testing concept. It can be
defined as the probability of making a decision to reject the null
hypothesis when the null hypothesis is actually true (a decision
known as a Type I error, or "false positive determination"). The
decision is often made using the p-value: if the p-value is less
than the significance level, then the null hypothesis is rejected.
The significance level is usually represented by the Greek symbol,
.alpha. (alpha). In one embodiment the a level of significance is
less than or equal to about 10%, such as about 9%, 8%, 6%, 5%, 4%,
3%, 2%, 1%, 0.1% or 0.001%. Smaller .alpha.-levels give greater
confidence in the determination of significance, but can run the
risk of failing to reject a false null hypothesis (a Type II error,
or "false negative determination"). If a test of significance
provides a p-value lower than the .alpha.-level, the null
hypothesis is rejected. Such results are referred to as
`statistically significant`. The clinical trial endpoint
development process comprises identifying requirements of a
clinical trial, optionally consolidating PRO data or metadata,
analyzing PRO data or metadata to determine whether the PRO data
meets one or more evaluative indicators for trial objectives,
developing a strategy for receiving the PRO data or metadata,
either from a PRO device or from other forms of communication, and
constructing a clinical trial endpoint based on the analysis of the
PRO data. In one embodiment, the PRO device is a portable
electronic device. The gathering, evaluating, and consolidating the
PRO data can be accomplished by applying computer logic steps
employing statistical algorithms for the treatment of data.
[0044] The identification step of clinical trial endpoint
development can involve several phases. In one embodiment, during
the first phase of the identification step, criteria for selection
of a target population of a clinical trial are articulated, human
subjects meeting the criteria are recruited, specific technical
fields related to the clinical trial are listed, and technical
experts familiar with the field are recruited. Afterward, to gather
PRO data, a PRO instrument is created. In one embodiment the PRO
instrument comprises a questionnaire that is drafted and optionally
modified based on input from one or more experts. One example of
such questionnaire is a heath-related quality of life (HRQOL)
questionnaire.
[0045] The second phase of the identification step can involve
gathering preliminary PRO data, which can include collecting
reports from subjects involved in prior clinical trials, such as a
first clinical trial. In one embodiment a first clinical trial is a
pilot trial that enrolls a smaller number of subjects than the
number of subjects in a second clinical trial. In one embodiment a
pilot trial is designed to test the design of a PRO instrument, the
design of one or more questions, or clinical trial design, with
fewer subjects than in a subsequent clinical trial. In another
embodiment, a first clinical trial enrolls a number of subjects
greater than or equal to the number of subjects in a second
clinical trial. In one embodiment, one or more pilot trials are
performed and the PRO instrument is modified based on the analysis
of the data from the pilot trial. In one embodiment, the
modification comprises: an addition of a question to a
questionnaire, a deletion of a question to a questionnaire, a
change in the wording of a question in a questionnaire, a change in
the format of a question in a questionnaire, or a change in the
order of one or more questions in a questionnaire, a change in the
time of day a question in a questionnaire is delivered, or a change
in the prompting of a question in a questionnaire. In one
embodiment, the question is a HRQOL question. In another
embodiment, more than one pilot trial is performed in different
clinical environments and the PRO questionnaire is modified based
on the analysis of the more than one pilot trials. At this step,
the modification can be focused on minimizing the influence from
clinical settings. The modified questionnaire can be tested further
to become more independent of environmental variables that can not
be controllable under design of clinical study. In one embodiment
data (such as PRO data or metadata) collected from a pilot trial is
used to develop one or more clinical trial endpoints for a
subsequent clinical trial.
[0046] In one embodiment, the pilot trial is of a shorter duration
than a subsequent clinical trial. In another embodiment, the pilot
trial has fewer clinical trial endpoints than a subsequent clinical
trial. In another embodiment, the pilot trial enrolls fewer
subjects than the subsequent clinical trial. In one embodiment, the
pilot trial enrolls about 10% to 90% (such as about 10%, 11%, 12%,
13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%, 21%, 22%, 23%, 24%, 25%,
26%, 27%, 28%, 29%, 30%, 31%, 32%, 33%, 34%, 35%, 36%, 37%, 38%,
39%, 40%, 41%, 42%, 43%, 44%, 45%, 46%, 47%, 48%, 49%, 50%, 51%,
52%, 53%, 54%, 55%, 56%, 57%, 58%, 59%, 60%, 61%, 62%, 63%, 64%,
65%, 66%, 67%, 68%, 69%, 70%, 71%, 72%, 73%, 74%, 75%, 76%, 77%,
78%, 79%, 80%, 81%, 82%, 83%, 84%, 85%, 86%, 87%, 89%, or 90%) of
the number of subjects of a subsequent clinical trial. In one
embodiment, a pilot trial precedes a clinical trial and comprises
administering the same medical product or medical products to one
or more subjects as is administered in the clinical trial
subsequent to the pilot trial.
[0047] The next phase of the identification step can include
listing physical devices to be used in the clinical trial or
customizing one or more devices for use in the clinical trial. In
one embodiment, a PRO device is used in the clinical trial. A PRO
device that interacts directly with a subject can be considered for
modification in this step. For example, certain technical features
of a PRO device can be too complex for a group of subjects. To
avoid the possibility in which these features can discourage or
hinder the subject from efficiently recording PRO data,
customization of one or more PRO device or drafting instructional
manuals attuned to the level of literacy of the intended population
can be undertaken. Customization can include disabling or
augmenting one or more of the physical features of a PRO device
(such as a keyboard, display, communications ability or security
measures) or modifying computer executable instructions on a PRO
device (such as those encoding a PRO instrument). If a long period
of time is required to record the data, or mobility of subjects is
required, a device for accommodating longer time or subject
mobility can be configured or designed.
[0048] Once the measurement system is selected, the manner of PRO
measurement is determined. Each PRO data entry is separately
evaluated to determine whether a PRO entry is influenced by time,
frequency, or location of measurements. For example, questions
regarding feeling of nausea tend to give a falsely high score if
measured in the morning. Questions regarding pain also have a
tendency to give a falsely high score if measured at night. These
known examples and other variables are considered by modifying
time, frequency, or location of measurement and are tested further
with various groups of subjects to provide a more reliable PRO
measurement system.
[0049] In one embodiment, methods of assessing PRO data or metadata
comprise evaluating each question in a questionnaire to determine
if a random prompting method (e.g. prompting a subject with a query
at a random time) is favorable over scheduled recordings of PRO
data (e.g., prompting a subject with a query at a pre-determined
time). In one embodiment, a random prompting method uses a PRO
device (such as a portable electronic device) that prompts a
subject to respond to a PRO question at a randomly given moment in
time. If a random prompting is more favorable and seems to provide
a more reliable method of measurements, consideration is given to
the manner of random prompting, such as beeping, voice (male,
female, child), music, vibration, or loudness of an audible prompt
depending on the PRO device used. Scheduled prompting is based on a
predetermined time schedule for prompting. A PRO device (e.g., a
portable electronic device) capable of executing computer
executable instructions can be employed to collect, store,
consolidate, and analyze PRO data. Examples of such PRO devices
which can be used with the methods of the present invention are
disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,879,970; and U.S. Patent Application
Publication Nos: 2006/0184493; 2002/0143563; and 2002/0156640,
which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.
[0050] In another embodiment, devices and methods of the invention
comprise providing a questionnaire to a subject, and assessing one
or more questions in the questionnaire to weigh the value of the
answer given. Furthermore, the method can comprise assessment of
the duration of each round of data entry. If it is unavoidable to
have a long questionnaire with many questions, a PRO device can be
programmed to present one or a few questions at multiple time
points. For example, if a given question shows increased
variability in response when it is presented toward the end of a
questionnaire as opposed to the beginning of a questionnaire, it
can be desirable to shorten or break down the questionnaire. It can
also be desirable to revalidate each question to determine whether
or not different ways of administering the question has a
significant effect on the variance of the answer.
[0051] In another embodiment, devices and methods of the invention
comprise evaluation of PRO data or metadata to determine whether
the PRO data meets one or more evaluative indicators of trial
objectives. For example, a questionnaire can be tested for its
psychometric attributes in order to ensure its suitability as a
measuring PRO instrument. Psychometric validation of a
questionnaire includes the evaluation of reliability, validity and
responsiveness using statistical methods. For example, if a
questionnaire is previously validated for its usefulness in
predicting a clinical outcome, its psychometric properties are
evaluated when the questionnaire is translated to use with a
different language group. Questions regarding functional
limitation, pain intensity, concern with appearance or activity
restriction can be validated as to whether the answers exhibit
similar variance in comparison to the same set of questions
presented in original language.
[0052] Consolidating evaluative indicators in order to construct
valid, PRO data-based clinical trial endpoints can be accomplished
by a statistical method known in the art, such as, but not limited
to, t-test, probability value test, Poisson distribution,
derivation of correlation coefficients for each item, or measuring
for consistency of each question over a period of time or over a
population of subjects.
[0053] In one embodiment, a method is provided to produce a
clinical trial endpoint based on data collected by PRO instruments.
In another embodiment, a method is provided for the design,
modification and validation of a PRO-data based clinical trial
endpoint. In another embodiment, a method is provided comprising
use of electronic devices in undertaking the production of a
PRO-data based clinical trial endpoint.
[0054] In one embodiment, a device of the invention comprises
computer executable instructions which function to produce a HRQOL
questionnaire that can reliably predict improved outcome of a HRQOL
independent of uncontrollable variables associated with the design
of a clinical trial. For example, statistical analysis is employed
for vetting procedures of a HRQOL questionnaire to produce a
HRQOL-related clinical trial endpoint. Such clinical trial
endpoints are selected based on a statistically significant
differentiating power to provide an enhanced or clear indication of
improved HRQOL for a medical product which is the subject of a
clinical trial. Therefore, in one embodiment, methods and devices
are provided for providing statistical relevance of HRQOL
questionnaires for a particular clinical trial endpoint related to
a particular test medical product.
Patient Reported Outcome (PRO)
[0055] In one embodiment, a PRO instrument is used in a clinical
trial to measure the impact of an intervention on one or more
aspects of subjects' health status. In one embodiment, a subject's
health status can be evaluated via simple or symptom level concepts
(i.e., pain severity), to more complex concepts (i.e., ability to
carry out daily activities), to extremely complex concepts (e.g.,
quality of life), which comprise a multi-domain concept with
physical, psychological, and social components. PRO data generated
by a PRO instrument can provide evidence of a treatment benefit
from the subject's perspective. Preferably, there should be
evidence that a PRO instrument, such as a questionnaire,
effectively measures the particular concept that is studied.
Results collected by one or more PRO instruments can be used to
provide support for one or more label claims in approved medical or
food product labeling, per FDA-prescribed guidelines.
[0056] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument provides a means for
measuring treatment benefits by capturing concepts related to how a
subject feels or functions with respect to his or her health or
condition. These concepts can be expressed as life events,
behaviors, or feelings. Measurable concepts by PRO instruments can
be either self-evident, such as walking, or non-observable, or
known only to the subject, such as feeling depressed.
[0057] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument can be employed to
support one or more clinical trial endpoints. In one embodiment, a
PRO instrument is designed to effectively measure a potential
label's claim of a benefit of a medical product to an intended
subject population. In one embodiment, PRO data referring to a
subject's symptoms or ability to function can be recorded by a PRO
instrument. In another embodiment, PRO data can be analyzed to:
determine characteristics of the disease, condition or syndrome
treated by a medical product in a clinical trial; identify a label
claim domain; identify a target subject population that can benefit
from the medical product; identify a clinical trial endpoint in
support of a label claim; or modify a PRO questionnaire to increase
the validity of the data obtained with it.
[0058] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument is designed to test
whether clinical trial results provide support for a simple label
claim, such as showing an improvement of a symptom, or to provide
an answer to a domain-specific question. PRO instruments can also
be designed to support a more complex label claim, such as a label
claim that is best substantiated by multi-domain support. In one
embodiment, a PRO questionnaire is designed to address questions
directed to more than one domain to delineate a subject's ability
to function or a subject's psychological state. For example, a
question is formulated to address how the improvement of a symptom
is translated to specific clinical trial endpoints, such as an
ability to perform a specific task, usually chosen from one of the
subject's daily routine activities. Questions can also be directed
to formulate quantifiable and measurable clinical trial endpoints
showing an improved psychological state.
[0059] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument is used for
capturing treatment effects that are known only to the subject,
revealing the subject's perspective about the effectiveness of a
treatment to health care providers, and providing a chance for
systematic assessment of the subject's perspective. Such systematic
assessment can provide valuable information that can be lost when
that perspective is filtered through a clinician's evaluation of
the subject's response to clinical interview questions.
Representative examples of PRO concepts that can be measured by PRO
instruments are pain, feeling, and clinically meaningful
improvement in contrast to improved physiological data. These
concepts are typically difficult to measure by other approaches as
there are no physical, non-subjective measures for these concepts.
Specifically, pain relief or pain intensity is a key aspect for an
evaluation of an analgesic product. However, there are typically no
observable or physical measures for these concepts. In one
embodiment, a PRO instrument is designed to support a medical claim
for a pain relief medication that indicates increase in the
duration of period actively engaged in daily activity.
[0060] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument is used to measure
PRO concepts such as seizure frequency, depression, heart failure,
angina, asthma, urinary incontinence, rheumatoid arthritis,
frequency of a condition, severity of a condition, sleep apnea,
sexual dysfunction, anxiety, worry about getting worse, having to
avoid certain situations, feeling different from others,
improvement in physical function, psychological well-being,
treatment satisfaction, response to side effects, or health-related
quality of life measures. Measurable PRO concepts can be global,
disease-specific, condition-specific, treatment-specific,
population-specific, impact of a condition to daily activity,
overall state of health, satisfaction with treatment or preference
for a treatment, adherence to a treatment, or a subject's own
evaluation on the overall state of a condition. PRO measurements
can occur as an event takes place, at a regular interval, or at
randomly chosen moments of time.
[0061] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument is used to measure a
single concept or multiple concepts. One or more items, such as a
question, can be used to support a single concept. Multiple items
can be used for multiple domains within a single concept. In
evaluating the usefulness of each item, all items can be equally
weighted or assigned to variable weights. In evaluating a
multi-domain PRO concept, each domain can be equally weighted or
assigned to variable weights. In scoring each item, a single rating
can be used, i.e. a score from 1 to 10 (such as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,
7, 8, 9, 10). Indexed rating, which uses multiple ratings of
related domains or independent concepts, can be used. Profiling,
which is multiple uncombined scores of multiple-related domains,
can be employed. Battery scoring, which is multiple uncombined
scores of independent concepts, can be employed for scoring and
evaluation. To evaluate an overall balance of PRO instruments, a
composite of index score, profile score, and battery score can be
utilized.
[0062] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument is developed by the
following steps. First, concepts that are relevant to a clinical
trial or to potential subjects to be enrolled in the clinical trial
are identified and the domains associated with the concepts are
delineated. Based on the identified concepts, a conceptual
framework is produced in which one or more variables, such as
characteristics of the subjects to be enrolled in the clinical
trial, mode of application of the PRO instrument, or expected
relationships among various concepts are outlined and examined
Second, items are generated based on the conceptual framework.
Methods of administrating the items are chosen. Decisions are made
on the response scale of each item (i.e. how broad or narrow a
scale should be), recall of item (time lapsed from the time of
event to the time of recording), and frequency of presentation of
item to subjects. An instruction to subjects as how to respond in
general is also drafted and vetted by rounds of presentations to a
test population. Procedures for scoring, such as frequency and
administrative aspects of scoring, rounds of pilot tests and the
manner of pilot tests, are decided. A portable electronic device,
preferably a hand-held device, can be selected for the presentation
of a PRO instrument (e.g., a questionnaire) to a subject. The PRO
instrument can be modified and refined through pilot tests for its
clarity, ease of use, and accessibility. Third, once PRO data is
collected, an assessment is made on each item in terms of score
reliability, validity, ability to detect change, and administrative
and respondent burden. Based on the assessment, items are added,
edited, deleted, or revised. When the difference in scores is
minimal, the scores are assessed to identify what constitutes a
meaningful difference. Statistical algorithms can be employed to
find a score or a range that defines a meaningful difference in
clinical outcome. Such a score or range can be used as tentative
clinical trial endpoints. PRO instruments for administering PRO
questions can be reformatted to present the questions in different
ways. Training materials for administrators are vetted based on
inputs from the subjects. PRO data collection can then be repeated
with a modified PRO instrument. Fourth, based on the results
obtained from modified PRO instrument, the measured concepts, study
population, applicability of concepts, instrumentation or method of
administration are adjusted. As a last step, clinical trial
endpoints that can correlate reliably to the objectives of clinical
study are elucidated.
[0063] In one embodiment, PRO data collection is accomplished by an
in person interview, paper-based query, electronic query, web-based
query, or interactive voice response query. The comparability among
the different modes of administration can be evaluated by employing
one or more methods of administrations and comparing the scores
obtained from each mode of administration.
[0064] In one embodiment, the PRO data collection period is
modified based on the need of population. For example, for an aged
population, PRO data collection can occur at the time an event
takes place as to avoid a long period of memory recall, which can
contribute to inaccuracy of the data. The collection period can be
deliberately set to a marked event, such as a visit to a clinic.
For example, a subject can be required to record PRO data just
prior to the visitation and soon after the visitation.
[0065] In one embodiment, PRO data collection acquisition employs a
HRQOL questionnaire that comprises questions to detect a false
sense of well-being. For example, for addressing whether a subject
can perform normal daily activities, two questions can be asked;
whether or not a respondent can perform daily activities; and
whether or not a respondent can perform a specific task, such as
eating, and if so, with how much difficulty. A respondent can score
highly on the question asking whether he or she can perform daily
activities, but can not score well on the second question.
[0066] In one embodiment, a PRO instrument response format can be a
visual analog scale (VAS), anchored or categorized VAS, Likert
scale, or a generic rating scale in which patients or subjects are
asked to choose the response that best describes their state or
experience, event log, pictorial scale, checklist or a combination
thereof.
[0067] In one embodiment, a PRO instrument can be evaluated for the
level of cognitive responsiveness or literacy level of subjects. An
interview or a transcript of an interview can be used to gauge a
subject's level of understanding and be used as a basis of item
modification. Other variables that can be considered and evaluated
include appearance of PRO instrument, length of questionnaire or
interview, font size, length of instruction, sentence structure,
word choice, level of technical knowledge required to understand
the condition a question is addressed to, age of intended
population, privacy settings, and perception by subjects that
certain answers are appropriate or expected.
[0068] In one embodiment, criteria can be employed to test the
validity of PRO instruments. For testing the validity of a scoring
range, items showing highly skewed response (e.g. all subject
responses scoring at the highest end of range) are modified. If a
subject responds to a question by answering that none of the
choices are applicable or correctly reflect his or her state of
health, such questions are modified. Questions that generate an
evenly distributed pattern over the range can be excluded as they
can lack a significant level of discriminating power. Questions
generating no variance, i.e. all subjects or respondents give the
same answer, can be excluded or modified. For questions designed to
reflect a change in symptom, feeling or mood, observations of
subjects by a clinician and comparison of the impressions or
recordings by the clinician to PRO reporting of the subject as a
test of validity, can be involved. If a question fails to capture a
change obviously observed by the clinician or an interviewer, the
question can be modified. Items that produce unstable responses
over a period of repeated tests can be assessed to increase their
reliability. Items that do not correlate with other items in the
same domain or concept of interest can need to be removed or
revised.
[0069] In one embodiment, a statistical analysis is employed to
analyze the PRO data. For example, to delineate a clinically
meaningful difference, standard deviation, t-test, probability
value test, or Poisson distribution is calculated to gauge a
statistically significant difference. A variety of statistical
methods can be applied to a set of PRO data to demonstrate
concordance among different methods in order to suggest that an
observed difference can be significant.
[0070] In one embodiment, a PRO instrument is used in a
double-blinded, randomized clinical study. PRO instruments can also
be used where blinding is not feasible, such as in then evaluation
of a medical device.
[0071] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument employs a design
where a subject cannot access his or her own previous answer in
order to prevent bias in the answer. A portable electronic device
can be configured to not permit access to a previous answer, while
also not having the ability to delete or modify the answer while
allowing multiple chances for answering the question.
[0072] In another embodiment, to determine whether a question
produces PRO data useful as an evaluative indicator for trial
objectives, the question can be tested for its suitability for use
in measuring a PRO instrument in terms of its psychometric
attributes. In one embodiment, the question is part of a
questionnaire Psychometric validation of a questionnaire includes
the evaluation of reliability, validity and responsiveness using
statistical methods. For example, if a questionnaire is previously
validated for its usefulness in predicting a clinical outcome, such
as an indexed measure of foot pain, its psychometric properties are
evaluated when the questionnaire is translated for use with a
different language group. Questions regarding functional
limitation, pain intensity, concern with appearance or activity
restriction can be validated as to whether the answers exhibit
similar variance in comparison to the questions written in the
original language.
Heath-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL)
[0073] In one embodiment, a PRO instrument or method of the
invention provides and assesses a subject's HRQOL by analyzing PRO
data. In one embodiment the PRO instrument is used in a clinical
trial designed to determine if a medical product produces a
clinical outcome that supports a specific label claim for the
medical product. In one embodiment, the PRO instrument comprises a
HRQOL questionnaire that provides a multidimensional assessment of
a subject's well-being. In one embodiment, the HRQOL questionnaire
measures qualities of a subject's life that are important to the
subject and are related to a subject's disease, condition,
syndrome, symptom or sign.
[0074] In one embodiment, measurements of a subject's HRQOL
complements physiological measurements of a subject's response to a
medical product. In another embodiment, measurements of a subject's
HRQOL provide information regarding the utility of a medical
product to a particular subject or class of subjects, such as how a
specific treatment will affect a subject's or subjects' daily
routine. Areas where an HRQOL measurement is useful include, but
are not limited to, pain measurement, psychological response
measurement, assessment on mobility or range of bodily motion, and
assessment on social modality, such as speech, hearing, dependency
to others, sleep, reading and writing.
[0075] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument can comprise one or
more HRQOL questionnaires made up of a number of items or
questions. These items are added up in a number of domains,
sometimes called dimensions. A domain or dimension refers to the
area of behavior or experience subjected to the measurement. A
physical function domain can include mobility and self-care. An
emotional-function domain can include depression, anxiety, and
well-being. Another example of domain frequently measured for HRQOL
is a social domain in which a subject's expectation, perception,
experience, or feeling in social setting is measured. The HRQOL
questionnaire can be rigorously evaluated by the methods disclosed
herein and the importance of each item can be rated in relation to
the others. Items can also be equally weighted, assuming that their
values are equal.
[0076] In one embodiment, an HRQOL questionnaire can be useful for
measuring the impact of chronic disease. Physiologic measures
provide information to clinicians but are of limited interest to
subjects; they often correlate poorly with functional capacity and
well-being, the areas in which subjects are most interested and
familiar with. In subjects with chronic heart and lung disease, for
example, exercise capacity in the laboratory is weakly related to
exercise capacity in daily life. An HRQOL questionnaire is also
useful to delineate and enumerate the commonly observed phenomena
in a more quantitative and measurable term. Two subjects falling
within the same clinical criteria often exhibit dramatically
different health-related attributes. For example, two subjects with
similar ranges of motion and similar ratings of back pain can
exhibit different physiological or emotional well-being. For
example, some subjects with back pain can continue to work without
major depression while others can have major depression and show
difficulty in continuing daily activities.
[0077] In another embodiment, an HRQOL questionnaire can be
utilized for the determination of medical interventions by a health
administrator. For example, health administrators are interested in
HRQOL for several reasons. In one embodiment, members of a
heterogeneous population of subjects can respond differently or
have different expenditure patterns in regards to a medical
product. For example, while two groups of subjects within a
heterogeneous population of subjects can respond equally well a
medical product and can show improvement in clinical signs or
symptoms, only one group of subject's HRQOL may show improvement.
Such information can be valuable to health administrators to
determine how to effectively manage health care expenditures. For
example, a health administrator may find it only medically
necessary to prescribe counseling to a group of subjects with a low
HRQOL and not medically necessary to prescribe counseling to a
group of subject with a high HRQOL. This choice by the health
administrator would conserve financial resources in comparison to
the costs of prescribing counseling to both groups. In another
embodiment, a health administrator can incorporate HRQOL questions
into existing assessments of medical products in order to measure
quality of care or effectiveness. In another embodiment, insurance
companies can use HRQOL information to inform reimbursement
decisions.
[0078] In another embodiment, an HRQOL questionnaire can be
administered either by trained interviewers or self-administered by
a subject. Trained interviewers can or can not have health-related
education. Administration by an interviewer can be employed where
extensive resources are available, such as when it is required by a
clinical trial, or mandated by government regulations. The
interview can be face to face or over the phone. A
self-administered HRQOL questionnaire can be employed whenever a
PRO device is an appropriate platform of administration. In another
embodiment an HRQOL questionnaire can be self administered by a
subject with some monitoring or supervision by an interviewer. For
example, a self-administered HRQOL questionnaire can be answered
under the supervision of an interviewer, either under direct
supervision or indirect supervision through electronic monitoring.
In another embodiment, a subject can undergo training or utilize
assistance when before or concurrent with the completion of an
HRQOL questionnaire. In one embodiment, the training or assistance
can be an in-person training session, a training video, a phone
number, an on-line chat connection, an instant-message connection
or email assistance. In another embodiment, methods of
administering HRQOL questions can be adjusted and customized for
each HRQOL question to collect PRO data that can be used for
delineating significantly reliable clinical trial endpoints.
[0079] In another embodiment, a surrogate system for the
administration of a HRQOL questionnaire can be used in obtaining
PRO data. For example, when a subject is able to answer questions
but is too ill to complete a questionnaire, a surrogate person can
be used to respond on behalf of the subject. The surrogate response
can be tested in a pilot study by examining correlative values of
the response collected among different surrogates. For example,
under an experimental setting, multiple surrogates are employed to
record responses from a given subject, and the answers are scored
and statistically evaluated for correlation among surrogates.
Questions that exhibit a greater degree of deviation among
surrogates can be modified to reduce the deviation and make the
data reflect a more accurate statement of the subject. Attention is
also given to evaluate whether questions can be uncomfortable for
dictating to a surrogate depending on the age of the surrogate,
gender of the surrogate, relation of the surrogate to the subject,
or other relationship factors. A surrogate system can be used
partially to capture questions regarding physiological domains,
such as hours of sleep, number of meals, feeling of vigor while
questions of emotional domains are pursued by other means, such as
an interactive display device or an interactive voice capturing
device.
[0080] In one embodiment, the scoring or statistical treatment of
PRO data can be performed using various scoring methods known in
the art. In one embodiment, the Karnofsky score can be used. The
Karnofsky scale runs from 100 to 0, where 100 represents perfect
health and 0 is death. The score can be represented as a number, a
decimal or a percentage. In one embodiment, the Karnofsky scale is
represented by percentages. In this scale, 100% is normal, no
complaints, no signs of disease; 90% is capable of normal activity,
few symptoms or signs of disease; 80% is normal activity with some
difficulty, some symptoms or signs; 70% is caring for self, not
capable of normal activity or work; 60% is requiring some help but
can take care of most personal requirements; 50% is requires help
often and requires frequent medical care; 40% is disabled and
requires special care and help; 30% is severely disabled and
hospital admission is indicated but no risk of death; 20% is very
ill, urgently requiring admission and supportive measures or
treatment; 10% is moribund, rapidly progressive fatal disease
processes; and 0% is death. Once informed of the scale, a subject
can be given some latitude to express their feeling in using any
form of numeric expression that the subject chooses to use.
[0081] In another embodiment, the Eastern Cooperative Oncology
Group (ECOG) score is used to score PRO data. The ECOG score, also
called the World Health Organization (WHO) score, runs from 0 to 5.
In ECOG scoring, 0 denotes asymptomatic state, 1 is symptomatic but
completely ambulatory, 2 is symptomatic with less than 50% in bed
during the day, 3 is symptomatic with more than 50% in bed, but not
bed bound, 4 is bed bound and 5 is death.
[0082] In another embodiment, the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAS) is
employed for scoring of anxiety level of PRO data. The Hamilton
Anxiety Scale (HAS) includes 14 items, each scoring from 0 to 4.
The evaluation of the presence and intensity of different items is
based on the subject's condition in the last 3-7 days. The total
score ranges between 0 and 56. A score less than 5 indicates lack
of anxiety, between 6 and 14 mild anxiety and more than 15 a
clinically significant level of anxiety.
[0083] In another embodiment, the Hamilton Depression Rating scale
(HAM-D) is used in a PRO instrument for recording and measuring the
prevalence and the intensity of specific symptoms of depression. It
includes 21 items; the first 17 are considered for the score
calculation. The cut-off scores, established on the basis of many
clinical studies, are as follows: 0-7 no depression, 8-15 mild
depression, more than 16 moderate to severe depression.
[0084] In an embodiment, for measuring pain, the Visual Analogue
Scale (VAS) scoring method can be employed to measure PRO data. It
includes 10 items, such as a colored or numbered rectangular box,
laid out in a row. The coloring or numbering scheme is designed in
a way a subject can intuitively understand that each color or
number represents an increment of pain from mild to severe
episode.
[0085] In one embodiment, an observational scoring system can also
be employed for administering a PRO instrument to subjects who
either has trouble expressing them, or can not express their
experienced quality of life verbally, such as children. For
example, the Lansky method can be used. In the Lansky method of
observational scoring, 100 is fully active and normal, 90 is minor
restrictions in strenuous physical activity, 80 is active, but
tired more quickly, 70 is greater restriction of play and less time
spent in play activity, 60 is up and around, but active play
minimal; keeps busy by being involved in quieter activities, 50 is
lying around much of the day, but gets dressed; no active playing
participates in all quiet play and activities, 40 is mainly in bed;
participates in quiet activities, 30 is bed bound; needing
assistance even for quiet play, 20 is sleeping often; play entirely
limited to very passive activities, 10 is neither playing nor
getting out of bed and 0 is unresponsive.
[0086] In one embodiment of the invention, a PRO instrument
comprises an HRQOL questionnaire designed to differentiate between
subjects who have a better HRQOL score and those who have a worse
HRQOL for a given medical intervention. To enable such
discriminatory power, a set of HRQOL questionnaires is tested with
a population over time and to see if the questionnaire can capture
the change, either in physical or in emotional domain, of a
subject's experience. Once proven to capture the change, the HRQOL
questionnaire can be used to test whether a given medical
intervention can have an ability to endow a high HRQOL score to a
group of subjects with certain characteristics. In such a
questionnaire, a clinical trial endpoint can be reached when a
designated HRQOL score is reached or a subject provides specified
answers to certain questions in a HRQOL questionnaire In one
embodiment, the subject is unaware of what answers or HRQOL score
signify that a clinical trial endpoint has been reached.
[0087] In another embodiment, an HRQOL questionnaire is capable of
differentiating between subject groups with high scores from low
scores, which can be useful for supporting a label claim of a
medical product. For example, in comparing two drugs, both treating
anemia, both drugs can have similar efficacy in restoring or
demonstrating physiological indication of restoration of normal
range of hematocrit. However, the two drugs do not produce similar
results in improving health-related quality of life. An HRQOL
questionnaire designed with clear differentiation power can be used
to support the label claim for a medical product that enhances or
improves a subject's health-related quality of life.
[0088] In further embodiments, an HRQOL questionnaire can contain
various instruments of measurement. For example, to measure
reliability of the questionnaire, or to demonstrate its
reproducibility and overall signal-to-noise ratio, questions can
contain items that are expected to incur more or less the same
responses from subjects. To measure changes or events, the
questionnaire can contain items that are expected to be responded
differently by subjects with a small change of physical or mental
state.
[0089] In another embodiment, an HRQOL questionnaire can be
designed to verify the validity of the answers provided. For
example, to reduce the margin of error of each question as well as
to validate the reproducibility of each answer, questions can be
repeated in different forms, presented with different levels of
comprehensiveness, deliberately biased to test the level of
scrutiny of the reader, or presented with different levels of
simplicity and clarity.
[0090] In one embodiment, an HRQOL questionnaire can be used in a
clinical trial, to measure primary and secondary outcomes. As a
tool for measuring primary outcome, for example, HRQOL questions
can be designed for a disease-specific measure if no other outcomes
exist that are directly clinically relevant to the subject. Another
example of using an HRQOL questionnaire as a primary measuring tool
is to design a questionnaire specifically for subjects with chronic
disease and show that a medical product under test is effective to
improve HRQOL in subjects. As a tool for measuring a secondary
outcome, an HRQOL measurement can be used to supplement
physiological response measures in a study of a new medical
product.
[0091] In one embodiment, measurement of a subject's HRQOL can also
be used to obtain a more comprehensive picture of the impact of
medical intervention. For example, a comparison among various
anti-hypertensive agents can be made by employing an HRQOL
measurement. Although the agents in comparison can exhibit similar
efficacy in treating hypertension, an HRQOL measurement in the area
of feelings of well-being, physical function, emotional function,
sleep, sexual function, and side effects, can show that
antihypertensive agents have a differential impact on many aspects
of HRQOL.
[0092] In one embodiment, measurement of a subject's "global" (also
known as generic) HRQOL can be employed to provide complementary
information about the range and magnitude of a medical product's
effect on a subject's overall HRQOL. In one embodiment, measurement
of a subject's global HRQOL can identify the existence of a
subject's adverse that would not be detected by only measuring a
subject's specific HRQOL. If the efficacy of an intervention is
already known, a clinical trial that measures a subject's global
HRQOL can attempt to elucidate the full impact of a treatment on a
subject's quality of life. Utility measures addressing economic
implications of an intervention can be a useful venue for global
measure of HRQOL. For example, a cost analysis per quality-adjusted
life-year gained can provide information valuable for subjects with
chronic disease.
[0093] In another embodiment, measurement of a subject's global
HRQOL can be used for gauging the trade-off between the length of a
subject's life or length of a subject's disease remission and
subsequent quality of life. Such situations can arise in
chemotherapeutic treatments for malignant disease or anti-viral
treatment for subjects with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
infection. For example, in a clinical trial of zidovudine for
mildly symptomatic HIV infection, the drug increased the period of
progression-free survival by an average of 0.9 months. However,
when disease progression or severe adverse events were counted as
negative outcomes in a "quality-adjusted: time without symptoms or
toxicity" test, subjects treated with zidovudine did poorly,
suggesting that the HRQOL perspective can impact treatment
decisions.
[0094] In another embodiment, measurement of a subject's specific
HRQOL can be used to provide information about the range and
magnitude of a medical product's effect on one ore more specific
aspects of subject's HRQOL. In one embodiment, a specific HRQOL
measurement for a subject's level of pain can be determined in a
clinical trial involving administration of a pain relief drug. In
another embodiment, a specific HRQOL measurement for a subject's
frequency of urination can be determined in a clinical trial
involving administration of a drug for treatment of urinary tract
infections. In another embodiment, a specific HRQOL measurement for
a subject's feeling of breathlessness can be determined in a
clinical trial involving administration of a drug for treatment of
asthma.
Development of Clinical Trial Endpoints
[0095] In one embodiment, a clinical trial endpoint (e.g., clinical
endpoint or surrogate endpoint) is developed through the endpoint
development process (EDP), which is a multi-step method for
evaluating, determining, and building a PRO measurement strategy
for implementation into clinical trials. The first step in the EDP
is to develop a Conceptual Model. A conceptual model is a framework
for understanding the relevant outcomes for a program of research.
It informs the selection and/or development of clinical trial
endpoint measures and it delineates the rationale for what needs to
be measured. In order to successfully achieve a Conceptual Model,
it is useful to specify the following: a prioritized list of goals
and/or label claims; the relevant subject population; the mechanism
of action or relevant drug action(s) of the treatment or
intervention; and the relevant concepts or treatment outcomes of
interest.
[0096] The next step in the EDP is Concept Justification. Concept
Justification includes activities to evaluate the evidence
supporting the relevance and importance of a specified measurement
concept. Moreover, these activities allow a researcher to
substantiate the decision to include a specified measurement
concept within a given clinical program from the perspective of
subjects, experts, payers, and the empirical literature. A Concept
Justification provides the evidence supporting the relevance and
importance of specified concepts and also informs the feasibility
of measuring those concepts. A Concept Justification substantiates
the selected measurement concepts via the following sources of
input: expert input, subject reports, empirical evidence, and payor
relevance. Obtaining expert input can include workshop
contributions, conclusions from published review papers, and
knowledge gained during meetings with a Key Opinion Leader or KOL.
Empirical evidence can include results from the published
scientific literature, professional presentations, and unpublished
internal study results. Support from subject interviews can include
results drawn from qualitative subject interviews and establish the
content validity of a concept and the clinical meaningfulness of
scores produced by the PRO instrument assessing that concept. Payor
relevance reflects the extent to which a payor is likely to pay for
a medical product based on its ability to effectively accomplish a
specified concept. A Concept Justification also allows for a
prioritization of measurement concepts within a given clinical
program. A hierarchy of concepts intended to support one or more
label claims can be used. In one embodiment the Concept
Justification comprises a can be documented as: a concept
specification and description; a concept justification matrix; and
a concept justification knowledge base.
[0097] The next step in the EDP is to develop a measurement
strategy. A measurement strategy describes the measurement approach
to optimally and effectively assess the selected effective concepts
and can include recommendations on the following: the focus of
assessment or the particular aspects of assessment (e.g., severity,
frequency, duration of a symptom-level concept); interval of
assessment (or the time between unique assessments); recall period
(or the period of time over which subjects are asked to evaluate
and report on their experiences); schedule of assessments (or how
often an assessment should occur); and timing of assessment (or
when or what time point an assessment should occur). A Measurement
Strategy informs the selection and/or modification of existing PRO
instruments or decision to develop new ones. In other words, the
Measurement Strategy provides a point of comparison among currently
available PRO instruments built to measure a specified concept to a
document outlining how that concept should optimally be measured
relative to scientific and regulatory guidelines. In the event that
no PRO instrument is available to measure the specified concept in
a way that is consistent with the measurement strategy, the
measurement strategy can be used to inform the development of a new
PRO instrument.
[0098] The next step in the EDP is PRO instrument identification
and evaluation. In one embodiment the PRO instrument is identified
and evaluated after a concept has been specified and an optimal
measurement strategy has been articulated. PRO instruments can be
evaluated in the context of the articulated Measurement Strategy to
determine whether they are designed to measure the specified
concept in the ways that are recommended; if there are existing PRO
instruments capable of measuring the specified concept in the ways
articulated in the Measurement Strategy, these PRO instruments can
be selected for use in clinical trials; if there are existing PRO
instruments capable of measuring the specified concept but not
necessarily in the ways articulated in the Measurement Strategy,
these can potentially be modified for use in clinical trials; if no
existing PRO instruments can be identified to evaluate the
specified concepts in ways consistent with the Measurement
Strategy, alternate Measurement Strategies can be considered at
this time; if no existing PRO instruments can be identified to
evaluate the specified concepts in ways consistent with the
Measurement Strategy, the creation and evaluation of new PRO
instruments can also be considered at this time.
[0099] The next step in the EDP is developing a Conceptual
Framework. A Conceptual Framework provides a description of the
concepts that underlie a label claim in terms of the Measurement
Strategy and/or the PRO instruments and items employed or used to
assess the specified concept. A Conceptual Framework can be
substantiated via theoretical or logical evidence. For example, for
a researcher to demonstrate content validity of a conceptual
framework, the research can make logical links between label
claims, the concepts that underlie those label claims, and the
Measurement Strategy or PRO instruments that measure whether a
medical product can produce an outcome that supports a label claim.
A Conceptual Framework can also be substantiated via empirical
validation evidence. Typically, a researcher must demonstrate that
a Measurement Strategy or PRO instrument produces scores that are
valid, reliable, and responsive to actual change in the specified
measurement concept of interest.
[0100] The final step in the EDP is to develop a clinical trial
endpoint model. The clinical trial endpoint model specifies the
hypothesized relationships among all treatment benefit clinical
trial endpoints intended to test one or more label claims. Setting
it apart from the conceptual framework is that the clinical trial
endpoint model not only specifies the actual clinical trial
endpoints, but it does so in a hierarchical fashion.
[0101] In one embodiment of the present invention, a method of the
present invention may be incorporated in computer-executable
instructions recorded on a computer readable medium suitable for
use in an electronic device, such as a computer, computer network
server or a portable electronic device. The computer readable can
include, for example, a hard disk, RAM medium, diskette, CD-ROM or
other optical or magnetic storage medium. The computer-executable
instructions can optionally be stored on a server that can be
remote from a subject and/or clinical staff member.
[0102] In another embodiment, a PRO instrument is incorporated in
computer-executable instructions recorded on a computer readable
medium suitable for use in an electronic device, such as a
computer, computer network server or a portable electronic device.
A computer readable medium can be an optical disc (such as a CD-ROM
or DVD-ROM), a recordable disc, a floppy disk, a hard disk, solid
sate memory, Random Access Memory (RAM) or Read Only Memory (ROM).
In one embodiment the computer readable medium is located in a
portable electronic device. In one embodiment a PRO instrument
recorded on a computer readable medium suitable for use in a
portable electronic device comprises one or more HRQOL questions.
In another embodiment the PRO instrument is a HRQOL questionnaire
In another embodiment the PRO instrument includes
computer-executable instructions for the collection of PRO data or
metadata.
[0103] In one embodiment, a PRO instrument is developed and
utilized in constructing a clinical trial endpoint. In one
embodiment the PRO instrument comprises one or more HRQOL
questions. In another embodiment the PRO instrument is a HRQOL
questionnaire In this embodiment three phases are involved in
constructing one or more clinical trial endpoints: creation of an
HRQOL question; verification of an HRQOL question for use in a PRO
instrument that is implemented on a PRO device; and acquisition of
PRO data or metadata (such as by using the PRO device to administer
the PRO instrument to a subject) and construction of one or more
clinical trial endpoints based on review of the PRO data or
metadata. In one embodiment, the PRO device is a portable
electronic device. During the creation phase, an HRQOL question is
developed by one or more methods described herein. In one
embodiment, a question can be developed 201 according to the EDP.
The HRQOL question can then be converted to a computer-executable
instructions 202. The HRQOL question is implemented in a PRO device
by installation of computer-executable instructions 203. The
question can be implemented alone or as part of a questionnaire
During the verification phase, each HRQOL question is tested for
whether it meets one or more evaluative indicators to assess its
ability to measure clinical outcomes. PRO data or metadata
collection is performed with a PRO device 204. The PRO data is then
analyzed for data validity, ability to detect change in patient's
response, administrative burden, respondent burden, and regulatory
compliance 205. Depending on the result of analysis, a decision is
made regarding the HRQOL question's meets one or more evaluative
indicators 206. There is a feed-back loop sending an unqualified
question back to the creation phase for revision and/or recreation
of the question and PRO device implementation. The feed-back loop
serves to enhance and improve each HRQOL question 212. A HRQOL
question, once qualified as demonstrating a capacity as an
evaluative indicator, is retained and collected with other
qualified questions for final implementation 207 during which a PRO
instrument comprising a collection of qualified HRQOL questions is
implemented in a PRO device 208. During the acquisition phase, the
PRO device, comprising a set of validated questions is employed in
collecting PRO data 209. The collected data is analyzed according
to the evaluative indicators 210. Based on the PRO data analysis,
one or more clinical trial endpoints is constructed 211. The
collected data can show an expected or an unexpected outcome of the
subject of a clinical trial. For example, PRO data analysis can
reveal previously unappreciated benefit or side effect associated
with a medical treatment. In one embodiment the PRO data analysis
includes using metadata collected about the PRO data to analysis
the validity or reliability of the PRO data.
[0104] In one embodiment, PRO data or metadata is collected and
processed by an electronic system as shown in FIG. 1. A process is
provided wherein a bilateral flow of information between a
processor which is implemented with computer-executable or
processor-executable instructions and a database, between the
processor 103 and a portable electronic device 101, between the
processor and input 104/output device 102, and between the
processor and one or more databases 105, 106 enable processing of
PRO data to determine if it meets one or more evaluative
indicators. In one embodiment a clinical trial endpoint is
constructed by consolidating results obtained from analyzing the
PRO data by determining, in part, if the PRO data meets one or more
evaluative indicators. Flowing of information to and from the
processor can be accomplished over a hard-wire connection or over a
wireless connection if the processor is housed in a place or a unit
physically separated from other devices, such as input/output
device, databases, or portable electronic device. Consolidation of
evaluative indicators can be performed by statistical, mathematical
or logical operation of two or more evaluative indicators.
Consolidation can also be performed by manual evaluation of
indicators by an operator experienced with evaluation of PRO data.
An example of a person skilled in the evaluation of PRO data would
include a person familiar with a formation of a health
questionnaire, such as an HRQOL questionnaire A statistical program
or a data mining program can be employed to spot recording error,
invalid data point or data outliner and exclude them in formulating
clinical end points. The processor is provided and is adapted to
communicate with at least one database. The database can store data
related to PRO data or metadata and instructions to respond to PRO
data or metadata. An example of a database is described in U.S.
Patent Application 20050009862. An input device is provided to
allow the subject or other person to provide input to the
processor. The input device can be a keyboard, a touch screen, a
mouse, a modem or other such device adapted for communication with
the processor. An output device is also preferably provided to
receive and display information from the processor. Examples of
output devices include a printer and a monitor.
[0105] In one embodiment of the invention, a portable electronic
device is provided and can be coupled to a processor. In one
embodiment, the portable electronic device can comprise an alarm,
an input device, an output device, and/or a database. In one
embodiment a portable electronic device is a Palm Pilot by Palm,
Inc.
[0106] In another embodiment, a portable electronic device is an
Acer C500 series(integrated GPS) such as, c510, c530, c531, and
Ferrari Racing, Acer N series such as, n10, n30, n50, n35
(integrated GPS), n300, n310, n311, and n320, ASUS series such as,
MyPal A600 1, MyPal A620, MyPal A620BT, MyPal A626, MyPal A632,
MyPal A636, MyPal A636N, MyPal A632N, MyPal A639, MyPal A686, MyPal
A696, MyPal A716, MyPal A730, MyPal A730W, P505, P525, P535, P735,
and P565, Audiovox series such as, Thera--Pocket PC with Built-In
CDMA Verizon cellphone, PPC-6600/6601--Blackberry series such as
850, 957, 6710, 6750, 7000, 7100, 8700, 8800, 8100, 8300, 9000--HTC
Harrier (CDMA), PPC-6700--HTC Apache (CDMA), PPC4100--GSM/GPRS
Pocket PC Phone, PPC-6800--HTC Mogul (CDMA), and PPC-6900--HTC
Touch (CDMA), Binatone Carrera (GPS) series such as, X350, and
X430, Cassiopeia series such as, BE-300, E-100, E-115, E-125,
EM-500, and A-22T, Compaq's PC Companion, Cowon's Cowon QSW, E-TEN
series such as, M6002, G5003, X500 glofiish4, M700 glofiish5,
T5006, and X800 glofiish7, Dell series such as, Dell Axim, Axim
X308, Axim X59, Axim X5010, Axim X50v11, Axim X5112, and Axim
X51v13, Dopod series such as, Dopod Site 14, Dopod C500 15, Dopod
C730 16, Dopod HTC Touch 17, Dopod D600 18, Dopod M700 19, Dopod
C720 20, Dopod 838 Pro 21, Dopod 818Pro 22, Dopod C800 23, Dopod
P800W 24, Dopod D810 25, Dopod U1000 26, Dopod 595 27, and Dopod
300 28, Fujitsu series such as, Pencentra 13029, and Pencentra
20030, Fujitsu-Siemens Computers series such as, Pocket LOOX 600,
Pocket LOOX 610BT, Pocket LOOX 610BT/WLAN, Pocket LOOX 410, Pocket
LOOX 420, Pocket LOOX 710, Pocket LOOX 718, Pocket LOOX 720, Pocket
LOOX N500, Pocket LOOX N520, Pocket LOOX N560, Pocket LOOX C550,
Pocket LOOX N100, Pocket LOOX N110, Pocket LOOX T810, and Pocket
LOOX T830, Garmin series such as, iQue M5 31, iQue M4 32, and iQue
M3 33, Hewlett Packard series such as, Jornada, Jornada 520 series,
Jornada 540 series, Jornada 560 series, Jornada 680 series, Jornada
690 series, Jornada 710, Jornada 720, Jornada 728, and Jornada 820
handheld, HP/Compaq iPAQ series such as, H1900, H1910, H1920,
H1930, H1935, H1940, H1945, H3630, H3670, H3760, H3850, H3870,
H3950, H3955, H3970, H3975, H4150, H4155, H5550, HP2210, HX2110,
HX2400 Series, HX2795, HX2795b, HX4700, HX4705, RX1950, RX1955,
RX3115, RX3715, RX5910, RZ1715, and hw6500 Series, Hitachi's
Hitachi G1000, HTC series such as, HTC Advantage X7500/HTC Athena,
HTC Advantage X7501/HTC Athena, HTC Advantage X7510, HTC Alpine,
HTC Amadeus, HTC Apache, HTC Artemis/HTC P3300, HTC Atlas/HTC
P4351, HTC Blue Angel, HTC Breeze/HTC MTeoR, HTC Canary, HTC
Cavalier/HTC 5630, HTC Census/HTC P6000, HTC Charmer, HTC Cheetah,
HTC Erato/HTC 5420, HTC Excalibur/HTC 5620/HTC 5621, HTC Falcon,
HTC Faraday, HTC Feeler, HTC Foreseer, HTC Galaxy, HTC Gene/HTC
P3400/HTC P3401, HTC Gemini, HTC Harrier, HTC Herald/HTC P3450, HTC
Hermes, HTC Himalaya, HTC Iris/HTC 5640, HTC Kii, HTC Libra/HTC
5800/HTC 5720, HTC Love/HTC P3350, HTC Melody/HTC Muse, HTC
Magician, HTC Monet/HTC 5320, HTC Omni, HTC Oxygen/HTC 5310, HTC
Panda/HTC P6300, HTC Pharos/HTC P3470, HTC Prophet, HTC Robbie, HTC
Rosella/iPAQ H3870/iPAQ H3875, HTC Sedna/HTC P6500, HTC Sirius/HTC
P6550, HTC Sonata, HTC Startrek/HTC 5411, HTC Tanager, HTC
Titan/HTC P4000, HTC Tornado/HTC Tornado Noble/HTC Tornado Tempo,
HTC Touch/HTC Elf/HTC Ted Baker Needle/HTC Vogue/HTC P3050/HTC
P3450/HTC P3452, HTC Touch Cruise/HTC Touch Find/HTC Polaris/HTC
P3650, HTC Touch Diamond/HTC Victor/HTC P3100/HTC P3700/HTC P3702,
HTC Touch Dual//HTC Nike/HTC P5500, HTC Touch Find, HTC Touch
HD//HTC Blackstone/HTC T8282, HTC Touch Pro/HTC Raphael, HTC
Trinity/HTC P3600, HTC Typhoon, HTC TyTN/HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN
II/HTC Kaiser, HTC Vox/HTC 5710/HTC S711, HTC Universal, HTC
Voyager, HTC Wallaby, HTC Wave, HTC Wings/HTC S730, HTC Wizard/HTC
Prodigy/HTC P4300, HTC P3400i, and HTC P3600i, i-mate series such
as, Momento Digital Photo Frame, Pocket PC, and Ultimate 9502,
iphone, IBM's Workpad z50, JVC's MP-PV131 (never released),
Jointech's J-Pro JL7100 Mini Laptop, LG's LN505 GPS Navigator.,
Linksys series such as, Linksys WIP-300 VoIP WIFi phone., and
Linksys WIP-330 VoIP WIFi phone., Magellan Navigation series such
as, Magellan RoadMate 1200, Magellan RoadMate 1412, Magellan
Maestro 3100, and Magellan Maestro 4210, Meizu's Meizu M8, Mobile
Crossing's WayPoint 100 including CF based GPS, and WayPoint 200
including BT based GPS, Motorola series such as, Motorola MC17,
Motorola MC35, Motorola MC50, Motorola MC70, Motorola MPx200,
Motorola MPx220, Motorola MPx300, Motorola i920/i930, and Template:
Motorola Vip 1200, MWg series such as, Atom Life, Atom V, MWg Zinc
II, MWg UBiQUiO 503g, and MWg UBiQUiO 501, NAVIGON (Personal
Navigation Assistant) series such as, 7100, 5100, and 2100, NEC's
Nec MobilePro, NTT DoCoMo's Sigmarion series, O2 series such as, O2
XDA, O2 XDA II, O2 XDA IIi, O2 XDA IIs, O2 XDA EXEC, O2 XDA Atom,
O2 XDA Atom Executive, O2 XDA Atom Life, O2 XDA Flame, O2 XDA
Orbit, and O2 XDA Stealth, Palm series such as, Treo 700w, Treo
700wx, Treo 750, Treo 755p, Treo 800w, and Treo 500, Philips series
such as, Philips Nino--bar-style device with touchscreen, and
Philips Velo--small-notebook-style device with monochrome display,
Samsung series such as, Samsung E900, Samsung pixel, and Samsung
1780, Silvercrest's Mobile Navigation System PNA-M4310T, Siemens
series such as, SX56, SX66, P1, and Siemens Sirec D300, Snap-on
Tools series such as, MODIS, and Snap-on SOLUS, Sophia Mobile nani,
ThinCCo series such as, Tisio 90CE 34, Tisio 95CE 35, Tisio 96CE
36, and Tisio 300CE 37, Toshiba series such as, e310, e335, e355,
e400, e450, e550g, e740, e750, e800, e805, e830, g500, and g900,
Unitech series such as, MR650, PA950, PA962, and PA966, UTStarcom
series such as, PPC-6700--HTC Apache, PPC-6800--HTC Mogul, and
PPC-6900--HTC Touch, Vadem series such as, Clio 1000, Clio 1050,
and clio NXT, Viewsonic series such as, V35, V36, V37, and V38,
Vivax's viaGPS 350, Yakumo's deltaX 5 BT 38.
[0107] In one embodiment, a computer algorithm employing
statistical analysis technique is applied to quantitative data
collected by a PRO device. Statistical analysis and other data
treatment can include logistic regression, discriminant function
analysis, classification and regression trees, neural networks, and
multiple linear regression. Detailed descriptions of statistical
technique are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,879,970, which is herein
incorporated by reference in its entirety.
[0108] In another embodiment, a computer program product is
provided that comprises a computer readable medium having computer
program logic encoded thereon for enabling a processor to provide a
clinical trial endpoint. In one embodiment, the computer program
product comprises a receiving procedure that enables a processor to
receive data from a portable electronic device. In one embodiment,
the data comprises PRO data or metadata. In one embodiment, the
data comprises a response to one or more questions responded to by
a subject who was administered a medical product or a placebo. In
one embodiment, the one or more questions are administered to the
subject by a portable electronic device. In another embodiment the
computer program product comprises an analyzing procedure to
analyze the data. In one embodiment the analyzing procedure
analyzes the data for one or more evaluative indicators. In another
embodiment the computer program product comprises an output
procedure to provide one or more clinical trial endpoints based on
the analysis of the data.
[0109] In another embodiment, a computer program product is
provided that comprises a computer readable medium having computer
program logic encoded thereon for enabling a processor to provide a
questionnaire for use in a clinical trial. In one embodiment the
computer program product comprises a receiving procedure that
enables a processor to receive data from a portable electronic
device, wherein the data comprises a response to one or more
questions responded to by a subject who was administered a medical
product or a placebo. In one embodiment the data comprises PRO data
or metadata. In another embodiment, the computer program product
comprises an analyzing procedure to analyze the data to determine
the validity or reliability of the question, wherein the procedure
collects a question determined to be valid or reliable and outputs
them for use in a clinical trial questionnaire or the procedure
modifies a question determined to be invalid or unreliable and
outputs them for administration to a subject who is administered a
medical product or a placebo. In another embodiment, the analyzing
procedure comprises analyzing the data for one or more evaluative
indicators. In another embodiment, the computer program product
comprises an output procedure to provide a validated or reliable
question for use in a clinical trial or to provide a modified
question to a subject who is administered a medical product or a
placebo.
[0110] In one embodiment, a portable electronic device, a server,
computer workstation or a desk top computer receives and assesses
data. In one embodiment the data is PRO data. In another embodiment
the data includes metadata collected about the PRO data, such as a
subject's timely completion of questions or compliance with a
clinical trial regimen. In one embodiment the metadata includes
information on when (time or date) a subject completed a question,
the amount of time a subject took to complete a question, the
length of a delay before responding to a prompt to answer a
question, the length of time between answering questions the number
of times a subject changed an answer for a question, the content of
a preliminary answer to a question where the answer was later
changed, the physical location of the PRO device when a subject
answered a question. In another embodiment, the PRO data or
metadata is transmitted to a remote location for assessment.
Transmittal can be through any conventional means for electronic
transmittal of data. For example, the transmission of collected
data can be performed via any route known in the art including, but
not limited to, direct communicative link (e.g., by wires,
circuits, or optical connections), wireless communication systems
(e.g., WiFi, 3G, bluetooth, EDGE), the Internet, and Earth-orbiting
satellite systems. In some embodiments, the collected PRO data or
metadata is transmitted to a data analysis system, such as a remote
data analysis system. In one embodiment the remote data analysis
system is comprises a computer for example a desktop computer, a
server, computer workstation, or other suitable computational
device known in the art, including a CPU or a network interface
circuit.
[0111] In one embodiment a computer system for providing a clinical
trial endpoint is provided that comprises a computer readable
medium having computer program logic encoded thereon, wherein the
computer program logic comprises instructions. In one embodiment
the computer system comprise input instructions for receiving data
from a portable electronic device, wherein the data comprises a
response to one or more questions responded to by a subject who was
administered a medical product or a placebo, wherein the one or
more questions are administered to the subject by the portable
electronic device. In one embodiment the data comprises PRO data or
metadata. In another embodiment the computer system comprises
analysis instructions for analyzing the data. In one embodiment the
analysis instructions comprise analyzing the data for one or more
evaluative indicators. In another embodiment the computer system
comprises output instructions for providing one or more clinical
trial endpoints based on the analysis of the data. In another
embodiment the computer system further comprises instructions to
send information to the portable electronic device, wherein the
computer system is remote from the portable electronic device. In
another embodiment the information comprises one or more
questions.
[0112] In another embodiment a computer system for providing a
questionnaire for use in a clinical trial is provided that
comprises a computer readable medium having computer program logic
encoded thereon, wherein the computer program logic comprises
instructions. In one embodiment the computer system comprises input
instructions for receiving data from a portable electronic device,
wherein the data comprises a response to one or more questions
responded to by a subject who is administered a medical product or
a placebo. In one embodiment the data comprises PRO data or
metadata. In another embodiment, the computer system comprises
analysis instructions for analyzing data to determine the validity
or reliability of the question, wherein the procedure collects a
question determined to be valid or reliable and outputs them for
use in a clinical trial questionnaire or the procedure modifies a
question determined to be invalid or unreliable and outputs them
for administration to a subject who is administered a medical
product or a placebo. In another embodiment, the computer system
comprises output instructions to provide a validated or reliable
question for use in a clinical trial or to provide a modified
question to a subject who is administered a medical product or a
placebo.
[0113] A computer or a system of computers can be specifically
programmed, designed, arranged and/or manufactured to implement
various embodiments described herein. A system comprising one or
more devices that is custom-made for collection of the PRO data or
metadata can send collected the PRO data or metadata to a separate,
centralized data processing center to assess the PRO data or
metadata. A distributed system of PRO data or metadata assessment
can be employed to assess a large data set collected by a PRO
device in which the assessment is performed by a multitude of
computers operated independently of each other. A simple, wearable
PRO device can be manufactured for clinical trials using a light or
simple carrying device for PRO data or metadata collection. An
all-in-one PRO device, wherein the device is capable of prompting,
collecting, assessing, and reporting the assessed outcome to a
designated server, printer, display, or a secured database can be
manufactured. Various electronic components, such as a central
processing unit (CPU), a graphic-user interface (GUI), a read-only
memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a electronic data
storage device such as a hard disk, a circuit board, a cooling
device such as a fan, a graphic accelerator chip, a wireless
communication board, a sound card, serial or parallel port, disk
controllers and data bus controllers and connectors or other
electronic components typically associated with the building of a
computing device can be employed in manufacturing a custom device
for collection and/or processing and assessing of PRO data.
[0114] In one embodiment, a PRO device, such as a portable
electronic device, allows a subject to self-administer a
health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire in connection
with a clinical trial. The portable electronic device can prompt
the subject to record certain patient-reported outcomes (PRO) and
subsequently transmit PRO data or metadata to a remote server for
statistical analysis and reporting. In one embodiment, the portable
electronic device's technical specifications include the following
elements: a processor, a memory, a display, input/output,
connectivity, a power supply and optionally, an expandable memory,
a USB interface or encryption. In one embodiment, the processor
provides high computing power with low power consumption. In one
embodiment, the processor is at least as powerful as a 32-bit Intel
or AMD processor running at a speed of 200 MHz. In another
embodiment, the processor supports multiple power modes to preserve
battery life. In one embodiment, the memory is RAM (random access
memory) and can be used as temporary processor memory and file
storage space. In one embodiment, the RAM provides at least 512 MB
of memory to run systems such as the operating system, the PRO
instrument (comprising the HRQOL questionnaire), and speech and
recognition software. In another embodiment, the portable
electronic device has a ROM Flash memory for data storage. In
another embodiment, the portable electronic device has a minimum 1
GB of NAND-ROM Flash memory for storage. In another embodiment, the
portable electronic device has one or more slots for external
memory. In one embodiment, the external memory is an external
memory card (such as CompactFlash, Memory Stick, or Secure Digital
card). In one embodiment, the external memory can store updates to
the HRQOL application or related applications.
[0115] In one embodiment, the portable electronic device that
comprises a display having at least a 320.times.320-pixel
resolution, which optionally support color. In another embodiment,
the portable electronic device comprises a display with touch
screen functionality. In one embodiment, the screen size and
resolution is manufactured to ensure sufficient readability in
field conditions without compromising battery life. In another
embodiment, the input device comprises one or more buttons which
correspond to the answer choices to each HRQOL question displayed.
In one embodiment, an HRQOL application assigns a function to a
button present on the portable electronic device.
[0116] In one embodiment, the portable electronic device comprises
speech recognition software to allow for subject responses to HRQOL
questions via built-in microphone. In another embodiment, the
portable electronic device comprises an HRQOL application that
comprises a text-to-speech functionality to offer voice prompts to
a subject via built-in speakers.
[0117] In one embodiment, the PRO device is a portable electronic
device that can connect to another computer, such as a server, by a
solid state connection, such as through a USB connection, a min-USB
connection, a telephone wire connection, an Ethernet connection, or
a base or charger connection. In another embodiment, the PRO device
is a portable electronic device that supports one ore more wireless
communication protocols with a remote server to upload subject PRO
data or metadata. In one embodiment, the wireless communication
protocol can be a short range wireless connection such as Bluetooth
and WiFi (IEEE 802.11). In another embodiment, the wireless
communication protocol can be one that works by cellular (such as
3G or EDGE) or a satellite network.
[0118] In one embodiment, the portable electronic device comprises
one or more encryption mechanisms to provide secure information
access, storage, or communication. Encryption and cryptography
installments, both in hardware encryption and in software
encryption, can be included for secure interactions between the
handheld and other devices. In one embodiment, the portable
electronic device is equipped to support security protocols to
guarantee safe operation and communication, such as Baltimore Cyber
Trust Root, Baltimore Cyber Trust Root, GTE Cyber Trust Global
Root, RSA Data Security, Testing ACS Root, Thawte Premium Server
CA, Thawte Server CA, and VeriSign Class 1,2,3,4 Public Primary
Certification Authority. Encryption can be achieved via software or
dedicated hardware to reduce the use of processor resources used to
perform encryption algorithms
[0119] In one embodiment, the portable electronic device comprises
a rechargeable battery, such as a lithium ion, a nickel cadmium, or
a nickel metal hydride battery. In another embodiment, the portable
electronic device has a port to receive power via USB or AC
adaptor.
[0120] In one embodiment, the portable electronic device comprises
a mother board. One or more CPU is placed on the board. In one
embodiment, the portable electronic device comprises a processor
for handling graphic input/output signals, such as NVIDIA GPU, that
can be employed in parallel to a main processor element. In one
embodiment, the portable electronic device comprises at least, a
power supply, a wireless radio transmitter, a processor, a RAM or
ROM memory and optionally, an encryption module. In one embodiment,
the portable electronic device comprises a USB or mini USB port to
connect with another device. Optionally, the portable electronic
device comprises a Firewire port. In one embodiment, an HRQOL
application comprising a questionnaire is e encoded in the RAM or
ROM memory as computer-executable instructions. In one embodiment,
the encoding is accomplished by installing computer-executable
instructions representing the HRQOL application comprising a
questionnaire on the portable electronic device's hardware as
"firmware" in the device's ROM.
[0121] In another embodiment, the portable electronic device
comprises at least one encryption device, power supply, and ROM or
RAM connected to a mother board. Both the operating system and the
HRQOL questionnaire can be encoded in the solid-state ROM flash
memory device as computer-executable instructions. The encoding
comprises installing computer instructions representing the HRQOL
questionnaire on the portable electronic device hardware as
"firmware" in the device's ROM. Upon activating the device, the
operating system will load the HRQOL application into the RAM
memory. In one embodiment, the HRQOL application will prompt a
subject with a series of questions on a graphic display. A subject
can respond to such prompts by means of input buttons (such as on a
keyboard) or by interacting with a touch screen. Subject responses
can be stored in flash memory until the completion of the
questionnaire The PRO data or metadata can be encrypted via a
wireless radio transmitter and transmitted to a remote server for
further processing.
[0122] In another embodiment, a portable electronic device begins a
process of self-initialization when powered on. The portable
electronic device loads a basic operating system from a built in
memory (e.g., ROM) or from external memory. The portable electronic
device's operating system provides for interfaces with the hardware
of the unit, such as the display, subject input buttons or
networking devices. Once fully loaded, the operating system in turn
loads a PRO data or metadata collecting software from ROM or other
memory storage. In one embodiment, the PRO data collecting software
is a PRO instrument. In another embodiment the PRO data collecting
software can also collect metadata.
[0123] In one embodiment, the PRO software then attempts to locate
any existing PRO instrument configuration files from within a
preprogrammed area of the portable electronic device's storage. If
no questionnaire is found in storage, the portable electronic
device informs the subject that no questionnaire could be loaded,
and then puts itself into a standby state until it is connected to
an administrative computer (such as a server or desktop) by a wired
or wireless connection and has a PRO questionnaire installed.
[0124] In another embodiment, computer executable instructions
encoding a PRO instrument is found in the portable electronic
device's storage. It can be loaded from storage into RAM by the PRO
software. The software can parse the questionnaire file,
interpreting elements from the file such as questions to be asked,
the format of answers expected, and the timing of the questions.
The portable electronic device's display screen informs the subject
of the title of the questionnaire and can optionally provide
general information about the questionnaire such as the current
time or the schedule of question prompts called for by the
questionnaire The portable electronic device then sets an interrupt
to coincide with the next timed question called for by the
questionnaire. The portable electronic device then puts itself into
a standby state until a question interrupt indicates that there is
a question from the questionnaire to be asked. The standby state
involves turning off the display to conserve battery power. The
portable electronic device can be woken from the standby state by
the subject's action, which causes the portable electronic device
to relight the screen and display the same information as on
startup. After a designated amount of time without a subject's
action, the portable electronic device's again returns to a standby
state.
[0125] In one embodiment, a portable electronic device can respond
to a question interrupt, by alerting the subject by activating an
alarm and presenting on the display the question called for by the
questionnaire file. In one embodiment the alarm is a flashing
light, vibration, or sound. The portable electronic device then
waits for the subject to read the question and enter an answer. The
subject can enter an answer by any of a number of methods. For
questions that use a multiple choice answer or a ranking on a
scale, the subject can be presented with a set of buttons, either
hardware buttons on the body of the portable electronic device or
"buttons" created on the screen in software. The subject can then
select the answer that describes their own experience through input
via the hardware buttons or via a touch screen selection of
software buttons. For questions that use long form narrative
responses, a blank area is provided on the display in which the
subject can write words using the touch screen and a stylus. This
answer is then digitally saved in a compatible format (such as jpeg
or png) in the storage of the portable electronic device. If the
subject does not immediately answer the question, the portable
electronic device continues to flash a light (such as an LED),
periodically vibrate or make audible sounds until the subject's
attention is gained and the question is answered.
[0126] In one embodiment, a portable electronic device, after a
question is successfully answered, can either store the answer to
the question in storage, in anticipation of returning results in
batch at a later time, or it can immediately return the answer to
the question to the tester, if such is demanded by the
questionnaire file. If answers are returned immediately, the
portable electronic device begins the process of acquiring a means
of networking.
[0127] In one embodiment, a portable electronic device is
configured to use a wireless Ethernet card. The portable electronic
device can bring the wireless Ethernet card online before
connecting to a remote server or desktop computer. The portable
electronic device can send power to the Ethernet card, the
operating system loads and initialize the drivers and the card will
begin searching for available wireless Ethernet networks. Where the
portable electronic device is programmed with information about
preferred or mandatory wireless networks, those networks are
searched for and, if available, configured. The portable electronic
device negotiates with the wireless network and receives an IP
address as laid out in the 803.xx Ethernet specifications and the
IP networking specifications. Once negotiation has finished, the
portable electronic device contacts an Internet host specified in
the questionnaire file, create a secure FTPS (or other suitable
protocol) connection and transfer the answer, along with a unique
identifier, to a predetermined directory on the host. While
connected, the portable electronic device can also, depending on
configuration, seek to download an updated questionnaire file if
one is available. If one is available, the old questionnaire file
will be replaced by the new one, which will then be read into
memory and its updated questionnaire program resumed. Once all
network activity has finished, the portable electronic device is
instructed to disconnect from any connected network, unmount the
device driver and power down the wireless Ethernet card.
[0128] In another embodiment, a portable electronic device is
configured to use a wireless cellular network. The portable
electronic device powers on the cellular hardware, loads the
appropriate drivers, obtains reception, negotiates network or
Internet access and securely connects to the proper host before
transmitting the PRO data or metadata. Once connected the portable
electronic device uploads the subject's entries to one or more
questions displayed on the portable electronic device and,
optionally, uploads a unique identifier, and downloads any
available updated questionnaires. After network activity has
concluded, the portable electronic device disconnects from the
cellular network, unmounts the device driver and power down the
cellular hardware.
[0129] The portable electronic device can also be configured to use
other network types as well, in which case the procedures can vary
slightly, but will follow the same principles as those outlined
above.
[0130] In embodiments where the portable electronic device
transfers the subject's answers immediately or stores them for
later transmittal, after it has finished that task, it can again
enter a standby state and wait for the next question interrupt.
[0131] In one embodiment, a portable electronic device can also, at
the instruction of the questionnaire file, set a transmit
interrupt. When this interrupt occurs, the portable electronic
device can use any of the above methods to connect to the server in
question and transfer any answers that have been collected since
the previous interrupt and which are residing in the portable
electronic device's storage.
[0132] Once the questionnaire's pre-programmed routine has
completed, the portable electronic device makes a final transmit
using the above mechanics, if called for by the questionnaire file,
and then goes into a standby mode, awaiting administrative
access.
[0133] In another embodiment, a portable electronic device can be
returned to the facility performing the clinical trial or study.
The facility can connect the portable electronic device to a
desktop or laptop computer equipped with administrative software
that recognizes the portable electronic device. After attaching the
portable electronic device to the computer, administrative software
on the computer collects any answers remaining on the portable
electronic device and optionally removes the previous questionnaire
file. The administrative software can also be used to install a new
questionnaire file into the portable electronic device in
anticipation of its use by a new subject in a new study.
[0134] While preferred embodiments of the present invention have
been shown and described herein, it will be obvious to those
skilled in the art that such embodiments are provided by way of
example only. Numerous variations, changes, and substitutions will
now occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the
invention. It should be understood that various alternatives to the
embodiments of the invention described herein can be employed in
practicing the invention. It is intended that the following claims
define the scope of the invention and that methods and structures
within the scope of these claims and their equivalents be covered
thereby.
* * * * *