History of the IRB

The modern story of human subjects protections begins with the Nuremberg Code, developed for the Nuremberg Military Tribunal as standards by which to judge the human experimentation conducted by the Nazis. The Code captures many of what are now taken to be the basic principles governing the ethical conduct of research involving human subjects. The first provision of the Code states that "the voluntary consent of the human subject is absolutely essential." Freely given consent to participation in research is thus the cornerstone of ethical experimentation involving human subjects. The Code goes on to provide the details implied by such a requirement: capacity to consent, freedom from coercion, and comprehension of the risks and benefits involved. Other provisions require the minimization of risk and harm, a favorable risk/benefit ratio, qualified investigators using appropriate research designs, and freedom for the subject to withdraw at any time. Similar recommendations were made by the World Medical Association in its Declaration of Helsinki: Recommendations Guiding Medical Doctors in Biomedical Research Involving Human Subjects, first adopted by the 18th World Medical Assembly in Helsinki, Finland, in 1964, and subsequently revised by the 29th World Medical Assembly, Tokyo, Japan, 1975, and by the 41st World Medical Assembly, Hong Kong, 1989. The Declaration of Helsinki further distinguishes therapeutic from non-therapeutic research.

In the United States, regulations protecting human subjects first became effective on May 30, 1974. Promulgated by the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (DHEW), those regulations raised to regulatory status NIH's Policies for the Protection of Human Subjects, which were first issued in 1966. The regulations established the IRB as one mechanism through which human subjects would be protected.

In July of 1974, the passage of the National Research Act established the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research. The Commission met from 1974 to 1978. In keeping with its charge, the Commission issued reports and recommendations identifying the basic ethical principles that should underlie the conduct of biomedical and behavioral research involving human subjects and recommending guidelines to ensure that research is conducted in accordance with those principles. The Commission also recommended DHEW administrative action to require that the guidelines apply to research conducted or supported by DHEW. References for the Commission's reports are listed in Appendix 1 (General Bibliography). The Commission's report setting forth the basic ethical principles that should underlie the conduct of biomedical and behavioral research involving human subjects is titled The Belmont Report, and is discussed in depth below.

In 1981, in response to the Commission's reports and recommendations, both the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS, formerly DHEW) and the FDA promulgated significant revisions of their human subjects regulations. As Levine (1986) points out, these revisions "do not alter the general principles of IRB review as they had evolved over the preceding three decades. Rather, they are concerned with some of the details of what the IRB is expected to accomplish and some of the procedures it must follow" [p. 324].

The DHHS regulations are codified at Title 45 Part 46 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Those "basic" regulations became final on January 16, 1981, and were revised effective March 4, 1983, and June 18, 1991. The June 18, 1991, revision involved the adoption of the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects. The Federal Policy (or "Common Rule," as it is sometimes called) was promulgated by the sixteen federal agencies that conduct, support, or otherwise regulate human subjects research; the FDA also adopted certain of its provisions. As is implied by its title, the Federal Policy is designed to make uniform the human subjects protection system in all relevant federal agencies and departments. The Federal Policy is discussed in depth in Chapter 2, Section A(i).

Additional protections for various vulnerable populations have been adopted by DHHS, as follows:

Subpart B, "Additional Protections Pertaining to Research, Development, and Related Activities Involving Fetuses, Pregnant Women and Human in Vitro Fertilization" became final on August 8, 1975, and was revised effective January 11, 1978, and November 3, 1978.

Subpart C, "Additional Protections Pertaining to Biomedical and Behavioral Research Involving Prisoners as Subjects" became final on November 16, 1978.

Subpart D, "Additional Protections for Children Involved as Subjects in Research" became final on March 8, 1983, and was revised for a technical amendment on June 18, 1991.

FDA regulations on the protection of human subjects are codified at Title 21 Parts 50 and 56 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Part 50, which sets forth the requirements for informed consent, became final on May 30, 1980, and was revised effective January 27, 1981, March 3, 1989, and June 18, 1991. Subpart C, which provides special protections for prisoners, was adopted on July 7, 1981; the effective date of Subpart C has been stayed until further notice. Part 56, which sets forth the provisions for institutional review boards, was adopted on January 27, 1981, with revisions to some sections effective February 27, 1981, March 3, 1989, and June 18, 1991.

Additional FDA regulations that are relevant to IRB review of research are Parts 312 (Investigational New Drug Application), 812 (Investigational Device Exemptions) and 860 (Medical Device Classification Procedures).

The President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research, which met from 1980 to 1983, produced numerous reports on various aspects of medical ethics and biomedical and behavioral research. Its mandate with respect to the protection of human subjects was, first, to review the federal rules and policies governing human subjects research, and second, to determine how well those rules were being implemented or enforced. References for the President's Commission's reports are listed in Appendix 1 (General Bibliography).

Several excellent sources trace the history of human subjects research and the development of the IRB system as a mechanism for the protection of human subjects. An account of the history of human subjects research and the human subjects protection system in the United States can be found in David J. Rothman's Strangers at the Bedside: A History of How Law and Bioethics Transformed Medical Decision Making (Chapters 1-5 and Epilogue) and in Dennis Maloney's Protection of Human Research Subjects. Rothman details the abuses to which human subjects were exposed, culminating in Henry Beecher's 1966 article, "Ethics and Clinical Research," published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and ultimately contributing to the impetus for the first NIH and FDA regulations. Other equally useful sources include Robert J. Levine's Ethics and Regulation of Clinical Research (Chapter 14), Joan E. Sieber's Planning Ethically Responsible Research, Robert M. Veatch's "Human Experimentation Committees: Professional or Representative?," and William J. Curran's "Government Regulation of the Use of Human Subjects in Medical Research: The Approaches of Two Federal Agencies."