Multiplicity Adjustment in Clinical Trials

• Activity Number: 128 - SPEED: Biometrics and Biostatistics Part 1
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Monday, July 29, 2019 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: Biometrics Section
• Author(s): Michael Proschan* and Erica Brittain
• Companies: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
• Keywords: Closed Testing Principle; Familywise Error Rate; Multiple Comparisons; Sequentially Rejective Bonferroni; Strong Control of Error Rate; Weak Control of Error Rate

Abstract

Multiple comparison adjustments have a long history, yet confusion remains about which procedures control type 1 error rate in a strong sense and how to show this. Part of the confusion stems from a powerful technique called the closed testing principle, whose statement is deceptively simple but is sometimes misinterpreted. This note presents a straightforward way to think about multiplicity adjustment.

KEY WORDS: Closed testing principle, familywise error rate (FWER), sequentially rejective Bonferroni, strong versus weak control of the FWER.