Search Help

Overview

The search tool shows aggregate, coded data for closed studies for clinical trial networks participating in SpecimenRepository.org.

Note: For ACTG and IMPAACT studies, the Specimen Inventory Report Utility (SIRU) allows searching active studies for authorized users. A Frontier Science ePortal account is required.

Features:

  • See the number of specimens and unique participant data available based on study, demographic, and visit interests.
  • View details for the studies for which the specimens were collected
  • Find publications associated with studies
  • View additional summaries for data items of interest
Screenshot of the different parts of the visualization screen
The search visualization

The toolbar contains the following features:

Toolbar Button Description
Undo my last action Take back the last action performed (including opening and closing filters)
Redo my last action Restore the last action from undo
Reset view Restore the visualization to its original state, clearing all filters
Refresh data in this view Ensure that the visualization data is up-to-date (not typically needed as the visualization will auto refresh as it is used)
Pause data queries while applying actions Temporarily disable auto refreshing data; see Pausing Auto Refresh
Complete updates made while paused Re-enable auto refreshing data; see Pausing Auto Refresh
Choose a format to Download Download data from the visualization in various formats
See this in Fullscreen Open the visualization in fullscreen mode

Interacting with the search visualization

The initial state of the search visualization displays all specimen and participant counts without any filtering applied.

Click on any data item in the visualization to filter by that item. For example, in the Specimen Types pane, click PBMC viable to filter all data by that specimen type. All data in the search visualization would now only show data for PBMC viable specimens (e.g. the list of Specimen Totals by Network Protocol now only includes PBMC viable specimens).

(Note: The ... in the title bar of a section of the visualization indicates that you can filter by clicking a data item in that section.)

Screenshot showing the search visualization filtered by the current selection
In this example, the user clicked PBMC viable and other data, such as the specimens grand total, have been updated to only include data for PBMC viable specimens.

Basic Filtering

  1. In the Filters section, click to open any filters of interest:

    Filter Category Description
    Protocols and Types Clinical trial network, specific studies, specimen types
    Demographics Information about the participant, such as sex, race, and age.
    Labs & Visits Information about the visit and laboratory results, such as type, year, and viral load
    Study Criteria Study criteria such as HIV status of participants on the study
    HVTN Study Criteria Product for vaccine-related studies

    Note: To switch between any criteria, click the Hide button in the filters bar to avoid opening multiple filter windows within the search visualization.

  2. Select filter criteria of interest.

    Note: Filters are applied immediately after selecting but it may take a few seconds for the search visualization to reload the data.

  3. Close the criteria window by clicking the Hide button in the filters bar.

Pausing Auto Refresh

By default, when a filter is changed, the visualization will automatically refresh. If you want to apply multiple filters at once, you can disable the auto refresh behavior.

In the toolbar, click Pause data queries while applying actions. While paused, the visualization will not be updated. You can apply filters quicker while auto refreshing is paused.

To start refreshing the visualization again, click Complete updates made while paused.

Note: While paused, the Refresh data in this view button will not refresh the visualization data. You must click Complete updates made while paused to update the visualization data.

Downloading Data

After searching, you can download data from the visualization. In the toolbar, click Choose a Format to Download.

Format Details
Image Export entire visualization as a PNG file.
Crosstab Export the selected data to a cross tabulation format.
PDF Export entire visualization to PDF with specified dimensions provided.
PowerPoint Export selected sections of the visualization as individual PowerPoint slides.

Additional Summaries

The Additional Summaries pane has multiple visualizations to switch between. Under Select below for additional summaries, click the menu below to change between visualizations.

Tip: The Additional Summaries provides data not shown in other visualizations, such as specimens by study phase and number of participants with DNA specimens. Be sure to review these summaries for additional helpful data.

Screenshot of the detailed view visualization
The Additional Summaries options

DNA Repository Details

Information on available DNA specimens for human genetic testing can be found under Additional Summaries. Select either Unique Participants with DNA Specimens by Study or DNA Amounts for Unique Participants with DNA Specimens to see what is available based on your selected search criteria.

Searching Publications

  1. In the filter bar, click Publication Search.

  2. (Optional) Use the search terms filters to limit the number of studies in the Publication Details list.

  3. To select a publication in the Publication Details list, click the publication.

  4. Hover over the selected study.

  5. Do one of the following:

    • To view the publication on PubMed, click Click View on PubMed (opens in new window),

    • To filter the visualization to only show data from this study, click Filter Dashboard on This Network / Protocol

Searching Studies

  1. In the filter bar, click Study Search.

  2. (Optional) Use the search terms filters to limit the number of studies in the Study Search list.

  3. To select a study in the Study Search list, click the study.

  4. Hover over the selected study.

    Screenshot of the study search filter
    The Study Search filter

  5. Do one of the following:

    • To view the study on ClinicalTrials.gov, click View on CT.gov (opens in new window)

    • To filter the visualization to only show data from this study, click Filter Dashboard on This Protocol

  6. To return to the dashboard, click Hide Study Search.

To stop filtering the dashboard by study, click the Reset View button in the visualization toolbar.