Clinical Research Organization

Clinical Research Organization (pronounced: klin-i-kal ri-surch or-guh-nuh-zey-shuhn), also known as a CRO, is a company that provides support to the Pharmaceutical industry, Biotechnology, and Medical device industry in the form of research services outsourced on a contract basis.

Etymology

The term "Clinical Research Organization" is derived from the nature of the work these organizations perform, which is clinical research. The term "organization" refers to a structured group of people who come together to meet a specific goal or objective.

Related Terms

• Clinical trial
• Contract research organization
• Pharmaceutical industry
• Biotechnology
• Medical device industry

Overview

A Clinical Research Organization (CRO) is a service provider for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries. CROs provide a range of services including pre-clinical research, clinical research, clinical trials management, and pharmacovigilance.

CROs are designed to reduce costs for companies developing new medicines and drugs in niche markets. They aim to simplify entry into drug markets, and simplify development, as the need for large pharmaceutical companies to do everything 'in house' is now redundant.

Services

CROs offer a variety of services including:

• Biostatistics
• Data management
• Project management
• Clinical trial data management
• Regulatory affairs

See Also

• Pharmaceutical industry
• Biotechnology
• Medical device industry
• Clinical trial
• Contract research organization

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