Medical scientific research

Two types of research

There are two types of medical research:

1. If you have health problems, you go to a physician. The physician will examine you to determine the cause of your complaints. This is referred to as a diagnostic assessment. The goal is to make you better.
2. There is also medical scientific research. The primary aim of medical research is not to make you better. There are three types:
    

• Research to find better treatments for illnesses. Examples: a better medicine to combat headaches, a new heart valve, improved assistance in the event of depression.
• Finding out more about a disease. Examples: do licorice sweets give you high blood pressure? What causes ADHD? What happens after a hernia?
• Detecting an illness. Example: how can we detect (bowel) cancer earlier? Can you detect Parkinson's at an early stage?

You can find more information in the brochure entitled Medical scientific research - general information for the research subject, which is a publication by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS).