Back to: N-of-1 Trials: A scientist in your back pocket
In the end, N-of-1 trials have the potential to benefit research in three ways:
- By examining how a treatment affects an individual with specific characteristics
- By gathering population level data about how a larger group of people respond to a treatment based on those individualized studies.
- By gathering enough specific information about each participant that the data can be easily broken down into distinct subgroups, allowing researchers to make more informed conclusions about the effects of these treatments for participants with different characteristics.
There are also social and emotional benefits to enrolling patients in N-of-1 trials. These trials can increase a patient’s engagement in their care, encourage more communication with their doctor (if they’re using this trial with a doctor), and improve their science literacy.