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Tables, listings and figures in a clinical study report - quality or quantity?
Ning Li1, Yaohua Zhang2, Naitee Ting3
1Department of Evidence Generation and Decision Science, Sanofi, Beijing, China.
Journal of Biopharmaceutical Statistics
|November 11, 2025
Summary
Excessive statistical tables, listings, and figures (TLFs) in clinical trial study reports (CSRs) can obscure key findings and waste resources. This paper addresses the issue, offering solutions to improve clarity and efficiency in pharmaceutical research documentation.
Area of Science:
- Pharmaceutical industry
- Clinical trial reporting
- Scientific communication
Background:
- Clinical trial study reports (CSRs) often contain numerous statistical tables, listings, and figures (TLFs).
- While some TLFs are essential for data interpretation, many are redundant.
- This overabundance can negatively impact reviewer comprehension and resource allocation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify the issue of excessive TLFs in CSRs.
- To explore the adverse consequences of redundant TLFs.
- To propose practical solutions for optimizing TLF content.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and analysis of common practices in pharmaceutical industry documentation.
- Case study examples illustrating the impact of excessive TLFs.
- Development of recommendations for efficient TLF generation and inclusion.
Main Results:
- Redundant TLFs can confuse reviewers, obscure critical drug insights, and lead to wasted resources.
- The prevalence of unnecessary TLFs is a significant challenge in pharmaceutical research.
- Optimizing TLF content can enhance the clarity and efficiency of CSRs.
Conclusions:
- Reducing redundant TLFs in CSRs is crucial for effective scientific communication.
- Implementing practical solutions can improve the quality and reduce the cost of clinical trial reporting.
- Streamlining TLF generation supports better understanding of drug properties and trial outcomes.
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