Authors: Kantheti, Havish S. et al.
Anesthesiology, September 12, 2025. DOI: 10.1097/ALN.0000000000005750
This study provides a comprehensive overview of anesthesiology-related perioperative interventional clinical trials registered in ClinicalTrials.gov between 2008 and 2022. The authors sought to evaluate the scope, design characteristics, funding sources, and trends over time to understand how the specialty’s research profile compares with other medical fields.
Out of 280,793 total interventional perioperative trials identified, 6,602 (2.4%) were anesthesiology-related. The proportion of anesthesia trials modestly increased from 1.5% in 2008 to 2.7% in 2022. Most anesthesiology studies were small, single-site, randomized trials with shorter durations than their non-anesthesiology counterparts. Median sample size for phase 3 and 4 anesthesia trials was 84 participants, compared with 90 for non-anesthesia studies, and median duration was 15 months versus 24 months.
Funding analysis revealed a major gap in institutional and industry support: anesthesiology trials were seven times less likely to receive industry sponsorship and six times less likely to receive government funding. In the United States, only 6% of anesthesia trials were federally funded and 10.8% were industry funded, compared to 18.9% and 43% for other perioperative fields, respectively. Research areas were most frequently related to regional (31.3%) and general anesthesia (30.2%).
These findings highlight a continued need for greater investment and collaboration in anesthesiology research. Expanding multicenter trial infrastructure and increasing funding support from both government and industry could strengthen the specialty’s clinical evidence base and global research impact.
What You Should Know:
Despite modest growth in anesthesiology research activity, the field remains underfunded compared with others in perioperative medicine. Building larger, well-coordinated multicenter studies is essential to enhance the specialty’s visibility and competitiveness in securing research support.
Thank you to Anesthesiology for bringing attention to this important analysis of the field’s research trajectory and funding landscape.