Repeated measures in clinical trials: simple strategies for analysis using summary measures

The summary measures approach to analysing repeated measures is described. The circumstances under which it can be advantageous to use such measures are considered. Strategies for baseline adjustment where there are multiple baselines are examined, as is the choice of appropriate summary statistic. A compromise trend/mean measure, regression through the origin, is proposed as being useful under some circumstances. An analysis using this measure is illustrated with a suitable example.