Web-based tools for finding optimal designs in biomedical studies

Abstract

Experimental costs are rising and applications of optimal design ideas are increasingly applied in many disciplines. However, the theory for constructing optimal designs can be esoteric and its implementation can be difficult. To help practitioners have easier access to optimal designs and better appreciate design issues, we present a web site at http://optimal-design.biostat.ucla.edu/optimal/ capable of generating different types of tailor-made optimal designs for popular models in the biological sciences. This site also evaluates various efficiencies of a user-specified design and so enables practitioners to appreciate robustness properties of the design before implementation.

On Optimal Designs for Clinical Trials: An Updated Review

“…Optimal designs for phase I dose-toxicity studies have been well researched in the literature. Statistical software (web-based) for constructing optimal designs for various nonlinear models, including the logistic model (4) is available [51,121]. Another class of optimal designs is the seamless phase I/II dose-finding trials where efficacy and toxicity are considered simultaneously.…”

Design Evaluation and Optimization of Population Pharmacokinetics Model Using an R Package PopED

“…Finding the best dose regimen and sampling times to ascertain the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of a drug are important aspects of drug development [1]. The cost of drug development continues to skyrocket, and design issues have been increasingly emphasized, not only for reining in cost but also for statistical efficiency and ethical issues for patients [2]. Finding the best design for the most accurate statistical inference at minimal cost is therefore a particularly pertinent issue in drug development.…”