Definition of Clinical Endpoint

In a clinical trial, the "clinical endpoint" is an event or outcome that may be measured objectively to determine whether the intervention being studied is beneficial. The endpoint is usually defined in the study's objectives.

Protocol

• Clinical endpoints are most often used in research-based medicine. It is important to establish the end target prior to starting the research. The endpoint could be a lab value, a symptom or a culture result, depending on what is being studied.

Why

• Choosing an endpoint gives the researcher a standard by which to evaluate data without extraneous factors.

Research

• As significant as what precedes the clinical endpoint is that which follows it. After the data is compiled, the analysis begins. From such analyses, treatments and therapies may be developed, implemented and evaluated.