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Cluster randomized trials with a small number of clusters: which analyses should be used?
Abstract
Background: Cluster randomized trials (CRTs) are increasingly used to assess the effectiveness of health interventions. Three main analysis approaches are: cluster-level analyses, mixed-models and generalized estimating equations (GEEs). Mixed models and GEEs can lead to inflated type I error rates with a small number of clusters, and numerous small-sample corrections have been proposed to circumvent this problem. However, the impact of these methods on power is still unclear. Methods: We performed a simulation study to assess the performance of 12 analysis approaches for CRTs with a continuous outcome and 40 or fewer clusters. These included weighted and unweighted cluster-level analyses, mixed-effects models with different degree-of-freedom corrections, and GEEs with and without a small-sample correction. We assessed these approaches across different values of the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), numbers of clusters and variability in cluster sizes. Results: Unweighted and variance-weighted cluster-level analysis, mixed models with degree-of-freedom corrections, and GEE with a small-sample correction all maintained the type I error rate at or below 5% across most scenarios, whereas uncorrected approaches lead to inflated type I error rates. However, these analyses had low power (below 50% in some scenarios) when fewer than 20 clusters were randomized, with none reaching the expected 80% power. Conclusions: Small-sample corrections or variance-weighted cluster-level analyses are recommended for the analysis of continuous outcomes in CRTs with a small number of clusters. The use of these corrections should be incorporated into the sample size calculation to prevent studies from being underpowered.
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“However, the empirical performance of some of those methods in terms of confidence interval coverage, type I error rates, and accuracy of standard error estimates has not been reported thoroughly, especially for cRCTs with a small number of clusters per condition [7, 8, 13].”
In the citing paper
“To mitigate the risk of inflating Type I error given the small number of clusters, we will use the Kenward-Roger degrees of freedom correction, which does not rely on the assumption of fixed cluster sizes [83].”
In the citing paper
“It was common for cluster RCTs to have too few clusters to achieve balance between intervention and control groups and in some it was unclear whether clustering was adequately dealt with in the analysis85.”
From A systematic review and meta-analysis of effects of early life non-cognitive skills on academic, psychosocial, cognitive and health outcomes (2018) · cites this paper as [85]
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Self-citationUse of estimands in cluster randomised trials: A review
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“Based on simulation studies with cluster-randomized trials, 25 our ITT analysis may be underpowered to detect statistically significant differences for small effect sizes.”
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“Furthermore, we note as others have that CRTs with small sample sizes may only be justified with very strong treatment effects.(16) In the vector-borne disease community, when interventions must be randomized at the village level, it is vital to find a balance between the often-limited number of clusters and the often…”
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“In addition, clustered designs can reduce the statistical power of the study (Brown et al., 2015; Leyrat et al., 2018).”
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Self-citationA hybrid approach to sample size re‐estimation in cluster randomized trials with continuous outcomes
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“3,23 To some researchers, 40 clusters are inadequate to yield precise estimates of the ICC in the frequentist framework.”
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“To account for the small number of clusters, the Satterthwaite correction will be applied to adjust the degrees of freedom in the linear mixed-effects models [39].”
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“Finally, as expected, implementing TMLE without aggregating the influence curve estimates in clusters led to significantly higher Type I error and lower coverage than the approach we proposed above (Supplemental Appendix 4.5).”
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“The between-within approach was used to adjust for small cluster numbers, 71,72 with intracluster correlation coefficients (ICC) estimated at each cluster level.”
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“…agitation and support emotional regulation, social interaction, and purposeful activity, but the evidence base remains limited by small samples, variable intervention protocols, inconsistent outcome selection, and incomplete reporting of implementation fidelity and ethical safeguards (10–12).”
Tipsmark, L. S., Obel, B., Andersson, T., & Søgaard, R. (2023) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0283325 · Cited by 1
“Since the present analyses comprise only 21 clusters, small sample correction was applied using the t-distribution rather than the normal distribution to construct confidence intervals [31].”
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“No small sample correction will be included for the primary outcome analysis as the number of clusters is sufficiently large to maintain the type I error rate [15].”
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“The original analysis of the SW-CRT [31] used a fixed effects model to account for cluster effects, control for cluster-level confounders, and address concerns over the robustness of applying the mixed effects model to a SW-CRT with such a small number of clusters [14, 15].”
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“This may increase the risk of bias due to baseline differences, and potentially decrease the precision of the trial outcomes [47, 48].”
Delgado, C., Pomar, E. M. G., Velásquez, P., Sánchez, V., Shimabuku, R., & Huicho, L. (2025) · Jornal de Pediatria · doi:10.1016/j.jped.2025.04.008 · Cited by 1
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“Many of the issues that we have outlined, such as biases in standard error estimators or complex correlation structures are mirrored in the cluster trial literature (Leyrat et al. 2018; Li et al. 2021).”
Siraneh, Y., Woldie, M. K., & Birhanu, Z. (2022) · Risk Management and Healthcare Policy · doi:10.2147/rmhp.s392171 · Cited by 1
“However, these analysis yield low power (<50% in some cases) when fewer than 20 clusters are randomized with failure to reach the expected 80% power.(9) We found that the generalized linear mixed”
BackgroundPhase Transition Unbiased Estimation in High Dimensional SettingsPreprint
Guerrier, S., Karemera, M., Orso, S., & Victoria‐Feser, M. (2019) · arXiv (Cornell University) · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1907.11541
“…Setting II (n = 50, mi = m = 5,∀i) reflects a possibly more frequent situation, Setting I concerns the case where n is small (and much smaller than m), a situation frequently encountered in Cluster Randomised Trials (see e.g. Huang et al., 2016; Leyrat et al., 2017, and the references therein).”
BackgroundA General Approach for Simulation-based Bias Correction in High Dimensional SettingsPreprint
Guerrier, S., Karemera, M., Orso, S., Victoria‐Feser, M., & Zhang, Y. (2020) · arXiv (Cornell University) · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2010.13687
“…simulation settings, with, in Setting I, a small number of clusters (m = 5) and a large number of measurements per cluster (ni = 50 ∀i), a situation that is frequently encountered in cluster randomized trials (see e.g. Huang et al., 2016; Leyrat et al., 2017, and the references therein).”
BackgroundStatistical Methods for the Design and Analysis of Infectious Disease Studies
Kennedy‐Shaffer, L. (2020) · Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University)
Frequentist inference for cluster randomised trials with multiple primary outcomesPreprint
Watson, S., Akinyemi, J. O., & Hemming, K. (2021) · arXiv (Cornell University)
A comparative study of R functions for clustered data analysis
Wang, W., & Harhay, M. O. (2021) · Trials · doi:10.1186/s13063-021-05900-7
“The simulation scenarios in [26] include ρ = 0.001, 0.01, and 0.05, and n c = 4, 6, 8, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 200.”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialEvaluating De‐Implementation Interventions
Goulão, B., Verkerk, E. W., Thavorn, K., Presseau, J., & Taljaard, M. (2023) · doi:10.1002/9781119862758.ch10
Abrahams‐Gessel, S., Beratarrechea, A. G., Irazola, V. E., Gulayin, P., Gutiérrez, L., Mahoney, M., & Gaziano, T. A. (2023) · Contemporary Clinical Trials · doi:10.1016/j.cct.2023.107357
ARGUELLO, D. J. (2024) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/57422
“The method adjusts for df to account for hierarchical complexity of data, including potential nesting and variable or small cluster sizes [3].”
InfluentialSharma, S., Alexander, K. E., Green, T., Wu, M., & Bonner, A. (2024) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.4785750 · Cited by 1
Lee, D., Lee, S. Y., Yoo, S. H., Kim, K. H., Kim, M., Shin, J., Hwang, I. Y., Hwang, I. G., Baek, S. K., Kim, D. Y., et al. (2024) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0302011
Robust analysis of stepped wedge trials using composite likelihood models
Voldal, E. C., Kenny, A., Xia, F., Heagerty, P. J., & Hughes, J. P. (2024) · Statistics in Medicine · doi:10.1002/sim.10120
Watson, S. (2024) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.4872695
Qin, N., Luo, Y., Wang, S., Li, Y., Li, J., Luo, J., Zhou, J., Zhang, Q., Xie, J., & Cheng, A. S. K. (2024) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2024-086489
“41 Sensitivity analyses will involve comparing the results from ITT analysis with those from Per-Protocol analysis.”
MethodAnalysis methods for covariate-constrained cluster randomized trials with time-to-event outcomes
Crisp, A. M., Halloran, M. E., Hitchings, M. D. T., Longini, I. M., & Dean, N. E. (2025) · BMC Medical Research Methodology · doi:10.1186/s12874-025-02465-w
Maloba, M., Finocchario‐Kessler, S., Wexler, C., Staggs, V. S., Maosa, N., Babu, S., Goggin, K., Hutton, D. W., Ganda, G., Mabeya, H., et al. (2025) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0318941
Inference for the treatment effect in staircase designs with continuous outcomes: a simulation study
Darzi, E. R., Grantham, K. L., Forbes, A. B., & Kasza, J. (2025) · BMC Medical Research Methodology · doi:10.1186/s12874-025-02567-5 · Cited by 1
“The cluster randomised trials literature often highlights concerns about the validity of sample size calculations and data analysis when standard methods are employed in trials with a “small” number of clusters [1, 26–28].”
Properties of adaptive, cluster-randomised controlled trials with few clusters: a simulation study
Nolan, E., Dizon, J., Oldmeadow, C. J., Holliday, E., Hall, A. E., & Barker, D. (2025) · Implementation Science · doi:10.1186/s13012-025-01443-6
“[22] found that a modelling method that performed best to analyse results from small trials, and was recommended previously [23], still failed to converge up to 40% of the time.”
Cluster-Randomized Trials in Surgery
Gouveia, K., Bzovsky, S., & Sprague, S. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-87083-5_15
Siminiuc, P., Agop-Forna, D., Dascălu, C. G., & Forna, N. C. (2025) · Romanian Journal of Oral Rehabilitation · doi:10.62610/rjor.2025.1.17.74
Anzman‐Frasca, S., Tauriello, S., Epstein, L. H., Ferrante, M. J., Gampp, A., Goldsmith, J., Haines, J., Leone, L. A., & Paluch, R. A. (2025) · JMIR Research Protocols · doi:10.2196/73618
“With only 6 unique locations being randomized in our trial, small cluster size adjustments will be applied to any models with the random effect of restaurant location retained, to improve type I error rates [34].”
The Get to Know Me Board in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Mixed-Methods Study
Byerly, C. L., Lévy, S., Thurman, P., & Moscou-Jackson, G. (2025) · American Journal of Critical Care · doi:10.4037/ajcc2025728
Keller, J. L., Deemer, S. E., Tanna, G. L. D., Pals, S. L., Fontaine, K. R., & Allison, D. B. (2025) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2025.1653392
Macedo, J. A. P., Giraudeau, B., & collaborators, T. E. (2025) · Statistics in Medicine · doi:10.1002/sim.70341
“For each number of clusters per arm, we specified several mean cluster sizes as 𝑛 (except when 𝑘 = 40forwhichonlyonemeanclustersizewasspecified)following the Leyrat et al. systematic review [20].”
Parkes, T., Carver, H., Boyd, J., Cotton, S. C., Breeman, S., Cooper, D., Forrest, M., Foster, R., Hawthorn, J., Hunt, K., et al. (2025) · Trials · doi:10.1186/s13063-025-09364-x
“A small sample approximation will be applied to the degrees of freedom, given the number of clusters [76].”
Clemes, S., Varela-Mato, V., Bodicoat, D. H., Brookes, C. L., Chen, Y.-L., Edwardson, C. L., Gray, L. J., Guest, A. J., Johnson, V., Munir, F., et al. (2022) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.19844692
Gallandat, K., Jeandron, A., Ross, I., Mufitini Saidi, J., Bashige Rumedeka, B., Lumami Kapepula, V., Cousens, S. N., Allen, E., MacDougall, A. M., & Cumming, O. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.14820914
Offorha, B. C., Walters, S. J., & Jacques, R. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26653278
Additional file 1 of A comparative study of R functions for clustered data analysis
Wang, W., & Harhay, M. O. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.17696299
Additional file 1 of Multiple imputation by predictive mean matching in cluster-randomized trials
Bailey, B. E., Andridge, R., & Shoben, A. B. (2020) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.12050496
Kristunas, C., Michael, G., Gray, L. J., & Hemming, K. (2022) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.19588608
Kristunas, C., Grayling, M., Gray, L. J., & Hemming, K. (2022) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.19588605
Additional file 2 of Multiple imputation by predictive mean matching in cluster-randomized trials
Bailey, B. E., Andridge, R., & Shoben, A. B. (2020) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.12050505
Metadata
- Authors
- Leyrat, C., Morgan, K. E., Leurent, B., & Kahan, B. C.
- Affiliations
- Inserm (FR)
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (GB)
- Queen Mary University of London (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Leyrat, Clémence
- Venue
- International Journal of Epidemiology
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2017-08-23
- Volume
- 47
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 321-331
- ISSN
- 0300-5771 (ISSN-L)
- 1464-3685
- OpenAlex
- W2746185216
- Cited by
- 244
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 34 · 2025: 33 · 2024: 34 · 2023: 32 · 2022: 39 · 2021: 30 · 2020: 21 · 2019: 17 · 2018: 4
- FWCI
- 8.02
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- International Journal of Epidemiology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- LSHTM Research Online (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) (acceptedVersion)
- Queen Mary Research Online (Queen Mary University of London) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Statistical Methods in Clinical Trials
- Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Statistical Methods and Bayesian Inference
- Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Advanced Causal Inference Techniques
- Keywords
- small number of clusters, type I error rate, statistical power, small sample correction, mixed models, generalized estimating equations, intraclass correlation coefficient, sample size determination, continuous outcomes
- MeSH terms
- Analysis of Variance, Computer Simulation, Data Interpretation, Statistical, Humans, Models, Statistical, Cluster Analysis, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Sample Size
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