Pfizer Embarks on a 'First' All-Electronic Clinical Trial

As Pfizer ($PFE) looks to tighten its belt on R&D spending, the drug giant has revealed plans to begin an FDA-approved clinical trial for an overactive bladder pill that enables patients to participate without having to leave their homes, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The study is being called the first all-electronic, home-based clinical trial to gain an OK from U.S. regulators because patients can report their progress via smartphones and their computers rather than going to clinics. The plan is to use online advertisements to recruit study patients, enable them to get initial blood work in their homes, and mail them supplies of the study drug (Detrol) directly. This means they won't have to travel to clinics to get checkups, one of several factors that will reduce the infrastructure that would normally be needed to support a conventional clinical trial.