Starting right: aligning eligibility and treatment assignment at time zero when emulating a target trial

BMJ 2026 Open access

Read full text
Authors: Edouard L Fu, Michael O. Harhay, Sebastian Schneeweiss, Rishi Desai, Miguel A Hernán
DOI: 10.1136/bmj-2025-084909
Cited by: 27
References: 48

Abstract

This article provides methodological guidance when emulating a target trial with longitudinal observational data by showing how to align eligibility criteria and treatment assignment at the start of follow-up to prevent design induced biases, such as immortal time and selection bias.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Advanced Causal Inference Techniques Statistical Methods in Clinical Trials Meta-analysis and systematic reviews

Publication details

Journal / source
BMJ
Publisher
BMJ
Volume
392
Pages
e084909–e084909
Publication date
12 January 2026
Language
EN