@article{a732ad5cf08447af8a2b41c47b2bd6bf,
title = "The role and challenges of cluster randomised trials for global health",
abstract = "Evaluating whether an intervention works when trialled in groups of individuals can pose complex challenges for clinical research. Cluster randomised controlled trials involve the random allocation of groups or clusters of individuals to receive an intervention, and they are commonly used in global health research. In this paper, we describe the potential reasons for the increasing popularity of cluster trials in low-income and middle-income countries. We also draw on key areas of global health research for an assessment of common trial planning practices, and we address their methodological shortcomings and pitfalls. Lastly, we discuss alternative approaches for population-level intervention trials that could be useful for research undertaken in low-income and middle-income countries for situations in which the use of cluster randomisation might not be appropriate.",
author = "Louis Dron and Monica Taljaard and Cheung, {Yin Bun} and Rebecca Grais and Nathan Ford and Kristian Thorlund and Fyezah Jahan and Etheldreda Nakimuli-Mpungu and Denis Xavier and Bhutta, {Zulfiqar A.} and Park, {Jay J.H.} and Mills, {Edward J.}",
note = "Funding Information: This Series was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. No authors received funding, and all authors volunteered their time . The funding source had no role in the design and implementation of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the paper; and decision to submit the paper for publication. The funding provided by the Gates Foundation was used for administrative support to coordinate submission efforts. The contents of the paper are the sole responsibility of the authors and might not necessarily represent the official views of the Gates Foundation or other agencies that might have supported the primary data studies used in the present study. The corresponding author (EJM) had the final responsibility for the decision to submit for publication. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license",
year = "2021",
month = may,
doi = "10.1016/S2214-109X(20)30541-6",
language = "English",
volume = "9",
pages = "e701--e710",
journal = "The Lancet Global Health",
issn = "2214-109X",
publisher = "Elsevier BV",
number = "5",
}