UConn Health Marks Clinical Trials Day

1st randomized clinical trial predates American Revolution

Clinical Research Center entrance

The entrance to the Lowell P. Weicker Jr. Clinical Research Center at UConn Health (file photo)

The scientific community generally accepts May 20, 1747, as the date for the start of the first randomized clinical trial. It’s credited to James Lind, a Scottish physician who, as a ship’s surgeon in the British Royal Navy, randomized sailors into groups to try to compare the effects of different treatments of scurvy.

Today, 277 years later, UConn Health is running dozens of clinical trials. Here are just a few examples:

At UConn Health’s Clinical Research Center, the number of active clinical trials changes monthly as studies close and new ones open. See CRC’s current research listing.

There’s also a searchable page to find information about other research studies at UConn Health.