Ethical concerns of including too few or too many participants in clinical studies

Background: Ensuring an appropriate sample size is crucial for ethical reasons when conducting a clinical study. Discussion: Insufficient participants may lead to underpowered studies, jeopardizing the detection of true effects and exposing individuals to suboptimal treatment. On the other hand, an excessive number of participants raise ethical concerns, subjecting individuals to unnecessary risks and burdens, and contributing to research waste, such as the misuse of resources. Conclusion: Overall, there is a significant emphasis on striking a balance in participant inclusion to attain accurate, generalizable, and ethical outcomes in clinical trials.