HEALTH chiefs have pledged to pour more money into clinical trials to help diagnose, treat and care for patients in York and North Yorkshire.

Selby and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) is involved in pioneering local and national trials to research the cause and treatments of diseases and monitor how its services are supporting patients.

The research is being carried out under the umbrella of the North Yorkshire Research and Development Alliance, of which the PCT and the York Hospitals NHS Trust are partners.

Dr Jim Isherwood, the PCT's medical director for provider services, said some of the "leading edge" trials were based at Limetrees, a York unit that deals with health issues in young people, and involved working with deaf children, children with chronic fatigue syndrome and research into autism.

Three practices in the PCT area are working to improve the treatment of epilepsy and mental health problems and to evaluate a nurse triage system for primary care.

Work is under way to improve the treatment and recognition of depression among the elderly and to improve activities in residential homes and to improve mental health services for people of working age.

Dr Isherwood said the bottom line was to improve the quality of care patients received.

He said: "Some projects evaluate the success or otherwise of new services so, for example, if patients are receiving support and, through the mental health services, find that their quality of life is better and that their admissions to hospital are reduced, then clearly that will be a success.

"Others are at a different stage. Some of the work on autism is to identify biochemical markers that then allow earlier diagnosis. We're not ready to advocate a new treatment, but it's possible earlier diagnosis might ultimately lead to new treatments."

Dr Isherwood said links with Hull York Medical School provided exciting opportunities for research into mental health, children's services and palliative care.

Professor David Torgerson, director of York Trials Unit at the University of York, said clinical trials were very important.

He said: "There are lots of treatments that are used in the health services and lots of things that are done which we don't know work because no one's done a trial. Sometimes, when we do a trial, we realise things that are commonly used are harmful."

Updated: 10:51 Saturday, October 16, 2004