Bayesian design using adult data to augment pediatric trials

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1 ARTICLE Clinical Trials 2009; 6: Bayesian design using adult data to augment ediatric trials David A Schoenfeld, Hui Zheng and Dianne M Finkelstein Background It can be difficult to conduct ediatric clinical trials because there is often a low incidence of the disease in children, making accrual slow or infeasible. In addition, low mortality and morbidity in this oulation make it imractical to achieve adequate ower. In this case, the only evidence for treatment efficacy comes from adult trials. Since ediatric care roviders are accustomed to relying on evidence from adult studies, it is natural to consider borrowing information from adult trials. Purose The goal of this article is to roose a Bayesian aroach to the design and analysis of ediatric trials to allow borrowing strength from revious or simultaneous adult trials. Methods We aly a hierarchical model for which the efficacy arameter from the adult trial and that of the ediatric trail are considered to be draws from a normal distribution. The choice of (the variance of) this distribution is guided by discussion with medical exerts. We show that with this information, one can calculate the samle size required for the ediatric trial. We discuss how inference of these studies in ediatric oulations deends on the arameter that catures the similarity of the treatment efficacy in adults comared to children. Results The Bayesian aroach can substantially increase the ower of a ediatric clinical trial (or equivalently decrease the number of subjects required) by formally leveraging the data from the adult trial. Limitations Our method relies on obtaining a value for the inter-study variability,, which may be difficult to describe to a clinical investigator. Conclusions The Bayesian aroach has the otential of making ediatric clinical trials feasible because it has the effect of borrowing strength from adult trials, thus requiring a smaller ediatric trial to show efficacy of a drug in children. Clinical Trials 2009; 6: htt://ctj.sageub.com Introduction Many diseases effect both children and adults, but treatments are often develoed and tested only in adults. When there is insufficient information on dose and efficacy in children, ediatricians face the dilemma of extraolating the evidence from adult clinical trials to a ediatric oulation or treating children with unroven treatments. Recently there has been ressure on harmaceutical comanies by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and on the academic community by NIH to conduct clinical trials in children. One aroach [1] is to conduct studies to establish ediatric dosage, but to infer efficacy from adult trials. There has also been a call to do more efficacy trials in children [2]. However, this is often challenging as diseases can have a low incidence in children and the timing and course of the disease can make the trial infeasible. This issue has arisen for us in the context of designing clinical trials for children in intensive care units (ICU) to test interventions that were develoed or are in develoment for adults. Since a ediatrician s observation that a drug is effective in adults increases his/her belief in its effectiveness in children, a natural aroach to Massachusetts General Hosital, Boston, MA, USA Author for corresondence: Dianne M. Finkelstein, PhD, Massachusetts General Hosital, 50 Staniford Street Suite 560, Boston, MA 02114, USA. dfinkelstein@artners.org! The Author(s), Rerints and ermissions: htt:// /

2 298 DA Schoenfeld et al. inference is to make these considerations exlicit using Bayesian methods. Trials that borrow strength using Bayesian methods are currently being considered by the FDA, although the various draft guidance documents do not give exlicit suggestions as how to incororate external information [3]. For the ediatric ICU studies, we want to use adult clinical trial data to generate a rior distribution to be used for the ediatric trial, and describe how to design (find the samle size required) and analyze the results of these studies. There is a literature on alying Bayesian methods to extraolate results from trials to oulations who were not included in the original trial. This can occur, for examle, when one wants to register a drug in a country where it was not tested. In a randomized clinical trial called a bridging study, investigators look for similarity in the ositive treatment effect [4,5]. Similarly, Bayesian methods can be used to interolate by determining how to estimate treatment effects among subsets of atients studied in a clinical trial. Dixon and Simon [6] roose a method that uses hierarchical models. The most straightforward way to aly Bayesian methods is to elicit a rior distribution on the treatment effect from medical exerts and use this to design and analyze the trial [7]. In a study by Goodman and Sladky in 2005 [8], a rior is used that is based on a meta-analysis with modified mean and variance reflecting the investigator s beliefs. However, for our ediatric ICU alication, we cannot always assume that the adult trials are already comleted. In this situation the ediatricians would not have an informed rior belief on the efficacy of the new treatment. Therefore, we would like to design a ediatric trial knowing only the design of the adult trial. This is often referable as there may be cost savings in doing simultaneous ediatric and adult trials. In addition, simultaneous ediatric and adult trials allow simultaneous aroval for both oulations and minimizes off-label ediatric use of a drug that was only roven efficacious in adults. On the other hand, doing one study after the other may save costs because if an adult study fails the ediatric study may not be deemed necessary. One shortcoming of methods for which only one rior is used to determine the osterior of the efficacy arameter is that the reort of a clinical trial using these techniques will only be helful to investigators who have same rior as the authors of the reort. However, different ediatricians may develo different rior beliefs about the efficacy of a treatment in children based on viewing the same adult data. Thus it would be useful to have a method that would allow each ediatrician to interret the data from a ediatric study based on their own rior belief on the relevance of the adult data and the results of one adult study. This would be facilitated by a rior that has only one arameter which can be relatively easily understood. Two Bayesian methods of borrowing strength from one clinical trial to another are the use of hierarchical models and ower riors. The former is described in [9,10] and are widely used while the latter is as an aroach [11] where the rior distribution is the likelihood from another trial (the adult trial) raised to a ower that measures the extent to which the result alies to the current (ediatric) trial [12]. More secifically, if we let 0 () denote the rior distribution for, let D 0 be the adult data, and let L( D) be the likelihood, then we define a discounting arameter, a 0, which weights the adult data relative to the current (ediatric) study as ðjd 0, a 0 Þ/LðjD 0 Þ a 0 0 ðþ and ranges from one, when the data from an adult is of equivalent value, to zero where no borrowing from adult results is aroriate. In this article, we will roose a Bayesian aroach for formalizing what ediatricians do when they combine the results from large adult trials with the results of smaller ediatric trials to make treatment decisions. We will use a hierarchical model for this, but will show that in our setting, the hierarchical model and ower rior methods are equivalent. Thus one can either secify the variation of the efficacy arameters of the adult and ediatric trials or a ower arameter which secifies the extent to which the adult trial extraolates to children. Therefore, the difficult task of having medical exerts to elicit a rior is reduced to the secification of one number reresenting how similar children effects are to the adult effects. From this, we will be able to roose a design for the trial that can be conducted simultaneously or subsequent to the adult trial. The results from the trial can be reorted so that interretation of efficacy can be driven by the rior of the reader. We will aly these methods to guide ediatric study design and analysis in the context of information from adult trials. Our goal is to rovide a new way to design ediatric trials, which we hoe will encourage the conduct of these trials in a setting that would otherwise be rohibitive to comlete. Methods We consider a hierarchical model that allows us to incororate the information from an adult study oulation into our determination of the

3 Bayesian Pediatric Trial Design 299 distribution of the arameter for the ediatric oulation. For this, we will need to secify the arameter of interest, which is the measure of a treatment s efficacy, and it s likelihood. This arameter can be any arameter related to a hyothesis that can be tested in both a ediatric study and an adult study. We assume that the arameter estimate is aroximately normally distributed. This can either be due to a large enough samle size or as the result of some transformation (such as logarithmic transform) on another arameter. This imlies that the likelihood function will be Gaussian. Next, we will need to secify the hierarchical model that allows us to link the information on efficacy from adult and ediatric trials. We denote the arameters from the adult study and the associated ediatric study as A and P, resectively. We assume that these arameters have a common rior normal distribution with mean and variance 2. We assume that has a noninformative rior. The secification of reflects how much variation we can exect in studies conducted in adults and children. This aroach differs from the usual use of hierarchical models where is given a rior distribution. We discuss this and other sensitivity issues in section Sensitivity to Assumtions. We focus on the case where the osterior is asymtotically normal; otherwise the osterior can be simulated using WinBUGS [13]. Evaluating treatment efficacy in children Let ^ P be the estimate of the treatment effect based on the ediatric data from subjects, ffiffiffiffiffiffi and let s P be its standard error multilied by. We factor 1= ffiffiffiffiffiffi out of the standard error to facilitate the samle size calculation. For examle, in a two samle t-test with equal variance, the treatment effect will have standard error ffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi 4=m where is the standard deviation of the outcome. Thus s ¼ 2. Now consider three random variables: P, ^ P the maximum likelihood estimate of P, and ^ A, the maximum likelihood estimate from the adult study. If there is more than one adult study we assume that the ^ A is the arameter estimate from a meta-analysis of all of them. The arameter measures the variation between the resonse of adults and children to a treatment and not the variation exected from study to study within those grous. We will determine a treatment is efficacious if P > 0. Let 2 be the variance of and let s A = ffiffiffiffiffiffiffi m A be the standard error of ^ A, where m A is the samle size of the adult study. Most clinical trials are large enough so that ^ A and ^ P can be considered normally distributed. This simlification allows us to analyze studies with all tyes of endoints using the same method [14,15]. The random variables ð P, ^ P, ^ A Þ are jointly multivariate normal with mean 0 and variance covariance matrix given by þ 2 2 þ þ 2 þ s 2 P = 2 2 þ 2 þ s 2 A =m A 7 5: The osterior distribution of P is it s conditional distribution given ^ A and ^ P. We can use standard methods to erform this calculation and then let 2!1to find the osterior of P. To simlify the exression let! ¼ s 2 A ðs 2 A =m AÞþ2 2 : Then the osterior mean of P is and the variance is ð1þ s P ^ P þ s2 A ^ A! s ð2þ P þ s2 A! s 2 þ! 1 P s 2 : ð3þ A This number o in (1) can be thought of as the number of adults that are borrowed from the adult data and used in the analysis of the ediatric data. Our roosed hierarchical model is equivalent to the Bayesian method suggested by Berry [16] for trials of similar medical devices. He suggests that the weight of the rior data be multilied by a factor to account for uncertainty about the relevance of the rior data to the current roblem. That factor is equivalent to o/m A. In his examles, he uses a value equal to 0.5, that is he assumes that half of the data from the revious trial can be ooled into the current trial. If o/m A ¼ 0.5 then the rior distribution of P has mean ^ A and variance 2s 2 A =m A. This would be equivalent to letting 2 ¼ 0:5s 2 A =m A. Setting 2 to this value would be equivalent to assuming that the between study variation is equal to 1/2 the variation of the maximum likelihood estimate. This would be a reasonable choice of o or 2 if m A were originally chosen to be large enough to resolve treatment differences, but not so large as to distinguish between similar studies. This aroach is equivalent to a ower rior as described in Ibrahim and Chen [11], since taking a normal robability density to the o/m A ower is equivalent to multilying

4 300 DA Schoenfeld et al. the recision by o/m A. Thus Ibrahim and Chen s a 0 is equal to o/m A. What makes the most sense to us is to elicit 2 rather than o or o/m A because or 2 is a direct measure of how different adult and ediatric results are exected to be. If the adult trial is large then! s 2 A =ð22 Þ. One can think of o as the ratio of the information that we have on the difference between adults and children, 1/(2 2 ), and the information of one observation in the adult trial, which is 1=s 2 A. We note that o should be interreted as the effective samle size reresenting a discounted amount of information borrowed from the adult study. When s A ¼ s P,ano value, say 100, leads to a osterior mean that is the same as that obtained by adding 100 additional atients to the ediatric samle who have a mean effect equalling ^ A and variance equalling s 2 A. However in the general situation this equivalence does not hold, and o should be interreted in context with s A, s P, m, and n as in (1) above. This is another reason why we refer eliciting to eliciting o, because the latter tends to be more difficult to interret. The osterior distribution of P will be asymtotically normal with mean given by (2) and variance given by (3). Thus, letting denote the normal cumulative distribution function, the osterior robability of the null hyothesis that P 0is 0! 1 ^ P s 2 þ ^ A P s 2 A B rffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi s 2 þ! A : ð4þ P s 2 A where o is defined in (1) above. In frequentist terms, this is analogous to a one-sided -value for the test of the null hyothesis P 0 in that small values constitute evidence against the null hyothesis. Since ediatricians may disagree on their rior belief as to the similarity of children and adult effects, we suggest that the data be reorted by lotting the robability of the null hyothesis versus. This would allow each ediatrician to use his/her own rior when evaluating the data. For the urose of FDA aroval, it will be necessary to secify these arameters. We discuss this further in the next section in the context of an analysis of a study. Samle size calculation The robability of finding a ositive result in children will deend on the result we find in adults. To find the samle size n required for the ediatric study, we need to define a Bayesian analogue of ower, calculate this ower for various choices of n and then choose the value of n for which this ower is 80 90%. Frequentist ower is defined as the robability of deciding that a treatment is effective under the assumtion that the true difference is equal to some resecified clinically meaningful difference. In our calculations we make the assumtion that the design of the two studies will be the same so s A ¼ s P ¼ s. Conditional on P and ^ A, ^ P is normal with mean P and variance s2. Using the formula from (4), we can show that the ower will be 0 ffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi 1 gð P Þ¼@ 1:96 ð =s 2 Þþð!=s 2 Þ ð!=s 2 Þ ^ A ð =s 2 Þ ffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi s 2 = P A: This can be simlified to gð P Þ¼ 1:96 ffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi! þ! ð1=sþð! ^ A þ ^ P Þ ffiffiffiffiffiffi where o is defined in (1) above. One could get the ower by calculating g( P ) with P set to a clinically meaningful alternative hyothesis, and o calculated using (1) and the that is secified by a clinical exert. This is a frequentist ower calculation. It gives the robability of rejecting the null hyothesis, albeit using a Bayesian analysis, under the assumtion of a clinically meaningful change. An alternative method to calculate ower is to use the rior distribution of P. Thus, letting f be the normal density function with mean ^ A and variance s 2 =!, the robability of rejecting the null hyothesis given that P > 0 (the ower), is R 1 0R gðþðþd 1 : ð5þ 0 ðþd This calculation would require numerical integration. Note also that we calculate the robability that the null hyothesis is rejected conditional on P > 0. This is because we do not want to reject the null hyothesis if P 0 so we do not include that region in our ower calculation. This is similar to the method described in [17]. It is also ossible to run Monte Carlo simulations to estimate this quantity. Alication to study design and inference We now illustrate the use of our methods to both design a trial that would evaluate efficacy in a ediatric oulation, as well as to analyze and synthesize data available from adult and ediatric trials. In addition, we consider a third examle for which adequate trials were conducted in both

5 Bayesian Pediatric Trial Design 301 ediatric and adult oulation. This third examle is meant to illustrate the interretation of the arameter that must be elicited from a medical exert. Power and samle size calculations We use the study of Omega-3 Fatty Acid, Gamma- Linolenic Acid, and Anti-Oxidant Sulementation in the Management of Acute Lung Injury or Acute Resiratory Distress Syndrome in Children (OMEGA) as an examle to illustrate the difference between our roosed ower calculation and the traditional ower calculation based only on one study. As of this writing the adult study is ongoing and a ediatric study using the methods of this article is being roosed. The arameter of interest is the difference in ventilation free days (VFD) [18] between atients who receive the medical food as oosed to standard feeding. The adult study will accrue 1000 eligible atients and the ediatric study would accrue 200 atients with a treatment: control ratio of 1:1. In the adult study the mean difference in VFD to study day 28 is 2.25 days with a standard deviation of VFD of We estimate the ower of the test using the Bayesian method and the ower of the test based just on the ediatric study under varying true treatment effects. We use ¼ 0.8 and 0.5 and assume that the standard deviation of VFD is equal in adults and children. Table 1 gives a comarison of the Bayesian ower calculation and the traditional ower calculation based only on ediatric study. Clearly, the Bayesian aroach of combining the data from the two trials rovides more ower to detect treatment efficacy even under the more modest assumtion that ¼ 0.8. Looking at this grahically, Figure 1 gives the relationshi of the ower of the Bayesian aroach to the value of (and o), assuming the true ediatric effect is 1 VFD. This grah illustrates the sensitivity of the ower to the value of, noting for examle that the ower of the Bayesian method exceeds 80% when < 0.45 and exceeds 90% when < It is imortant to understand the effect of this method on Tye I error. The frequentist Tye I error rate in a onesided test will be greater than when the adult study is ositive. This is exected because the adult results are roviding information on the ediatric efficacy. One aroach to evaluating the imact of the choice of is to consider the inference that would be made if the observed ediatric result were zero or negative and the adult effect were ositive. For instance if the ediatric result were zero VFD and adult result Table 1 Power (%) Figure 1 were 2.25 from 1000 atients, then from (4) the ediatrician would conclude the ediatric effect significant (Prob( 0 data, ) < 0.025) if he/she believes the value of was < If an investigator believes the value of is in this range, then they would only be convinced that the treatment was not of benefit in children if the ediatric result went in the wrong direction or the adult result were equivocal. This suggests that one could try to elicit by asking under what situations an investigator would use a drug for children given different results in adults and children. Inference Comarison of ower calculations Adult effect True effect Bayes ower Bayes ower Traditional in eds ¼ 0.8 (%) ¼ 0.5 (%) ower (%) w =1000 w = 846 w = 580 w = 380 w = 256 w = n Power of Bayes analysis for varying and! values We use a study of the effect of Drotrecogin Alfa to illustrate the effect of values on Bayesian inference. In a ublished reort [19], the efficacy of Drotrecogin Alfa in treating severe sesis was demonstrated in 1690 adult atients (840 in lacebo grou, 850 in Drotrecogin Alfa grou). The 28 day mortality rate was 30.8% in the lacebo

6 302 DA Schoenfeld et al. grou and 24.7% in the treatment grou, giving an odds ratio of The study found a statistically significant association between Drotrecogin Alfa treatment and mortality. In a searate study led by Giroir [20], the efficacy of Drotrecogin Alfa was assessed in ediatric atients. A total of 477 atients were included. The 28-day mortality was 17.45% in the lacebo arm and 17.15% in the treatment grou, with no statistically significant evidence that the treatment was effective in the ediatric oulation. We aly Bayesian methods described here to assess the efficacy of Drotrecogin Alfa for ediatric atients using the data from both studies. We calculate the osterior distribution of the log-odds ratio and the associated osterior robability that the null hyothesis is true. We calculate these statistics with values ranging from 0 to 1. Figure 2 gives the Bayesian osterior robability that the null hyothesis is true Prob( P 0 data, ) in the ediatric clinical trial under varying values. This robability is an increasing function of and takes values greater than when > This figure could be used for interretation of the results of the study, as it informs an investigator how to examine the data from that of the ediatric trial within the context of their belief in the relationshi between the efficacy in the ediatric versus the adult oulation. The secification of is difficult in this setting because the arameter is the log-odds of mortality which is not intuitive. One way to exress the results would be to say that if an investigator were willing to believe a-riori that the true odds ratio w =1690 w =1189 w = 630 w = 353 w = 218 w =147 = n Figure 2 Posterior robability of the null hyothesis being true under a range of and! values in childrenffiffiffiwas between 0.89 and 1.13 (exð1:96 2 0:044Þ) times the true odds ratio in adults, with 95% robability, then their value of would be and they would see the ediatric trial as just barely significant, P( P > 0 ¼ 0.044) ¼ Estimation of m from clinical trials There are some diseases and indications that have been carefully studied in sufficiently large clinical trials in both ediatric and adult oulations. There are several drugs for treating HIV/AIDS and cancer that have been tested by multi-centered trials grous focused on each of these oulations. In addition, there are treatments for symtoms exerienced by both oulations that have undergone extensive clinical trails, such as for examle, analgesic treatments for fever from uer resiratory tract infection (URTI). We consider treatments for fever to obtain an estimate for the arameter discussed in this article. Table 2 summarizes findings from three ublished aers [21 23] regarding the average temerature reduction effect within 6 h using Iburofen or Tylenol (Acetaminohen) on adult and children. We consider both treatments to get our estimate for as we can get a better estimate of the arameter by utilizing two or more studies and obtaining a Bayesian estimate that incororates all sources of variation. This requires an assumtion that can be drawn from trials that have the same efficacy endoint (decrease in fever) and the same disease/symtom (URTI). Using Table 2, we can estimate ¼j A P j= ffiffiffi 2. The estimated ¼ 0.32 for Iburofen and ¼ 0.18 for Acetaminohen. From the ublications we obtain estimated s 2 A =m A ¼ 0:04 for Iburofen and for Acetaminohen. Alying (1) using these estimates of leads to o/m A ¼ and 0.107, for Iburofen and Acetaminohen, resectively. This imlies that the adult study samle is counted as equivalent to 16.3 and 10.7% of the original size in a ediatric study under a Bayesian design. Therefore, the effective samle size contribution from the adult Iburofen study to the test of efficacy in children would be about 7. In a corresonding Acetaminohen ediatric study, the effective Table 2 Estimated temerature reduction in adults and children by two drugs Drug Adult effect Pediatric effect Iburofen 1.21 C(n ¼ 44) 1.66 C(n ¼ 58) Acetaminohen 0.62 C(n ¼ 157) 0.87 C(n ¼ 56)

7 Bayesian Pediatric Trial Design 303 samle size contributed by the adult trial would be about 16. Sensitivity to assumtions In the methods described above we assume a Gaussian likelihood and a Gaussian hierarchical model where is secified rather than having a rior distribution itself. We discuss these assumtions in turn. We use a Gaussian likelihood because we assume that these methods will mainly be used for clinical trials with relatively large samle size. The advantage of using a Gaussian likelihood and riors is that they allow a closed form exression for all the quantities of interest and they make the interretation of the method we roose more straightforward. The only common clinical trial situation where this might not work is the analysis of rare adverse events, where a Poisson likelihood or binomial likelihood would be more aroriate. In order to understand the sensitivity of our assumtions on the rior distribution of P, A, and, consider that when the adult study is comlete there will be an induced rior on P. This rior will be normal and have a location which is equal to ^ A and a disersion that is a function of the size of the adult study and the value of. If rather than choosing a value of we choose a rior for it, then the effect will be to change the shae of the distribution and it s disersion but not it s location. For instance if we assume that 1= 2 has a rior that is (a, b) then the rior for P will have a t-distribution with degrees of freedom and disersion deendent on (a, b). For most choices of (a, b) there is a corresonding choice of a fixed which will usually yield similar inferences. Choosing (a, b) rather than adds comlexity without adding much in the way of flexibility. The effect of the choice of a normal rior for A and P is similar to the secification of rather than secifying it s rior. The consequences of the choice of a different distribution will be small comared to the consequences of a different choice of. There would be advantages to using a rior for if there were more than one tye of adult. For instance, in bridging studies with multile countries, the use of a rior distribution for allows the hierarchical model to adat to the observed variation between countries. In that case the rior for the country of interest will deend not only on the mean of the estimates from the other countries but on the observed disersion of the estimates. It is worth ointing out that in the case of multile historical studies, some roerties discussed in this article, such as the equivalence between using a ower rior and using a hierarchical model, no longer hold [7]. In this situation, we would refer a rior on. It is also ossible that one would want a rior for P that isn t centered at ^ A, but has some offset or multilicative factor that derives from known differences between children and adults. This can be accommodated with some cost in comlexity. We refer in these cases to try to find a arameterization that naturally makes this correction such as we did with the use of the log-odds as a arameter in examle 2. Discussion When ractical factors limit the investigators ability to recruit large samles in a ediatric study, information from the corresonding adult study can be useful for statistical analyses. Our examles suggest that the Bayesian aroach can imrove the ower of statistical inference in ediatric clinical trials. The aroach can imrove the recision of statistical estimation by reducing the width of the confidence intervals in a ediatric study. Bayesian methods allow for designs with samle sizes smaller than that required in a comletely standalone study, which can be rohibitively large. We caution that it is wise to carefully review the design and analyses of an adult study before including it in a Bayesian design and analysis, as the conditions of the trial or the atient oulation may make this extraolation inaroriate. We note that although clinical trials are rimarily focused on testing efficacy, they also serve the imortant function of roviding a rofile of the side effects and comlications of a new theray. Some side effects in ediatric subjects may be too rare or require too long follow-u to be revealed in a study based on this Bayesian technique. It may be imortant in such a case to carry out a more careful monitoring of the side effects in a ost-marketing surveillance or Phase IV or V trial. Our roosed techniques could also be used in other situations where one is trying to extend the results of a study to new oulations. For instance, harmaceutical comanies often have to decide whether to test an aroved drug in a new oulation, the often-called hase IIIB trial. Using our technique, by leveraging the data from the revious trial, they could get enough data from a relatively small study to decide whether to go on to larger registration trials. This method could also be used in a registration trial itself, although the subjectivity in the choice of might be a roblem for regulators.

8 304 DA Schoenfeld et al. We have roosed a Bayesian aroach for formalizing what ediatricians do when they use results from large adult trials in combination with evidence from ediatric studies to make a decision about whether a treatment should be used to treat children. Our methods can be alied to both design and analysis of trials done in these two oulations. Bayesian methods allow a formalization of the belief about the relationshi between the outcome of treatment in the two oulations, which is a strength in that it translates the discussion to a more quantitative comarison. However, it also reresents the challenge of these methods both in communicating the design and analysis with medical colleagues and in determining the correct rior to use. We have tried to resond to this issue by framing the relationshi in terms of a single arameter that can be used grahically and descritively to aid the discussion. It is our hoe that this aroach may increase the use of Bayesian methods in the arena of ediatric clinical research, which will ultimately increase the chance that ediatric clinical trials will be carried out and reorted in way that convinces care-givers and ultimately imroves ediatric care. Acknowledgments The authors wish to acknowledge grants HHSN C, HHSN C, CA74302, and HD References 1. Abdel-Rahman SM, Reed MD, Wells TG, Kearns GL. Considerations in the rational design and conduct of hase I/II ediatric clinical trials: avoiding the roblems and itfalls. [Review]. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2007; 81: Schreiner MS, Greeley WJ. Pediatric clinical trials: shall we take a lead? [comment]. Anesth Analg 2002; 94: FDA. Guidance for the Use of Bayesian Statistics in Medical Device Clinical Trials Draft Guidance for Industry and FDA Staff, 2006, Available at: htt:// (accessed 26 May 2009) 4. Liu JP. Bridging studies. In Chow SC. (ed.). Encycloedia of Bioharmaceutical Statistcs, Marcel Dekker, New York, 2003, Liu JP, Hsiao CF, Hsueh H. Bayesian aroach to evaluation of bridging studies. J Bioharm Stat 2002; 12: Dixon DO, Simon R. Bayesian subset analysis. Biometrics 1991; 47: Siegelhalter DJ, Abrams KR, Myle JP. Bayesian Aroaches to Clinical Trials and Health-care Evaluation Wiley, Chichester, Goodman SN, Sladky JT. A Bayesian aroaches to randomized controlled trials in children utilizing information from adults: the case of Guillain-Barre syndrome. Clin Trials 2005; 2: Lau J, Schmid CH, Chalmers TC. Cumulative metaanalysis of clinical trials builds evidence for exemlary medical care. J Clin Eidemiol 1995; 48: DerSimonian R. Meta-analysis in the design and monitoring of clinical trials. Stat Med 1996; 15: Ibrahim JG, Chen MH. Power rior distributions for regression models. Stat Sci 2000; 15: Chen MH, Ibrahim JG. The reltaionshi between the ower rior and hierarchical models. Bayesian Anal 2006; 1: The BUGS roject. Available at: htt:// (accessed 26 May 2009) 14. Faraggi D, Simon RM. Large samle Bayesian inference on the arameters of the roortional hazard models. Stat Med 1997; 16: Thall PF, Simon RM, Shen Y. Aroximate Bayesian evaluation of multile treatment effects. Biometrics 2000; 56: Berry D. Using a Bayesian Aroach in Medical Device Develoment, Available at: ft://ft.isds.duke.edu/ub/ WorkingPaers/97-21.s (accessed 26 May 2009) 17. Brown BW, Herson J, Atkinson EN, Rozell ME. Projection from revious studies: a Bayesian and frequentist comromise. Control Clin Trials 1987; 8: Schoenfeld DA, Bernard GR. Statistical evaluation of ventilator free days as an efficacy measure in clinical trials of treatments for acute resiratory distress syndrome. Crit Care Med 2002; 30: Bernard GR, Vincent J-L, Laterre P-F, et al. Efficacy and safety of recombinant human activated rotein C for severe sesis? N Engl J Med 2001; 344: Sennik D. Drotrecogin Alfa Does not Imrove Outcome in Children with Sesis, Reuters Reort Schwartz JI, Chan C-C, Mukhoadhyay S, et al. Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition by rofecoxib reverses naturally occurring fever in humans. Clin Pharmacol Ther 1999; 65: Bachert C, Chuchalin AG, Eisebitt R, et al. Asirin comared with acetaminohen in the treatment of feverand other symtoms of uer resiratory tract infection in adults: a multicenter, randomized, doubleblind, double-dummy, lacebo-controlled, arallelgrou, single-dose, 6-hour dose-ranging study. Clin Ther 2005; 27: Vauzelle-Kervroedan F, d Athis P, Pariente-Khayat A, et al. Equivalent antiyretic activity of iburofen and aracetamol in febrile children. J Pediatr 1997; 131: