Single‐subject research designs in pediatric rehabilitation: a valuable step towards knowledge translation

Knowledge translation may be particularly challenging in pediatric rehabilitation, where study findings are often ambiguous owing to low statistical power or inconsistent responses to intervention. Disconnection between research protocols and clinical practicality, as well as variability of responsi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inDevelopmental medicine and child neurology Vol. 59; no. 6; pp. 574 - 580
Main Authors Romeiser‐Logan, Lynne, Slaughter, Rebecca, Hickman, Robbin
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 01.06.2017
Subjects
Child
Humans
Pediatrics - methods
Rehabilitation
Research Design
Translational Medical Research
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Knowledge translation may be particularly challenging in pediatric rehabilitation, where study findings are often ambiguous owing to low statistical power or inconsistent responses to intervention. Disconnection between research protocols and clinical practicality, as well as variability of responsiveness in heterogeneous pediatric populations, may further impede integration of research findings into everyday practice. Use of single‐subject research designs (SSRDs) may bridge the gap between research and practice, with robust design options that better identify and preserve patterns of responsiveness to specific interventions and offer protocols that are more readily implemented in practice settings than can be done in traditional randomized controlled trials. This review defines SSRD, provides examples of research questions that can be answered using SSRD, details the experimental designs that can be used and the level of evidence of each design, and describes statistical analysis approaches and clinical application. This analysis will aid researchers, reviewers, clinicians, and others in better understanding SSRD methodology and its application in everyday practice. What this paper adds Single‐subject research designs (SSRDs) preserve variability of individual responses to care, with designs and levels of evidence relative to robustness of experimental control and quality of implementation. N‐of‐1 trials (or other SSRDs) may be used to decide the best treatment protocol for an individual patient without bias.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
ObjectType-Review-3
content type line 23
ObjectType-Article-2
ObjectType-Feature-1
ISSN:0012-1622
1469-8749
1469-8749
DOI:10.1111/dmcn.13405