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- Page navigation anchor for Experiment DesignExperiment DesignShow More
One group of "placebo-labeled-as-echinacea" might be considered to be included in this study. Therefore, there will be total five groups in this study:
1. No pill; 2. Placebo - blind to the subjects; 3. Placebo - labeled as echinacea; 4. Echinacea - blind to the subjects; 5. Echinacea - labeled as echinacea.
Then, multiple comparison would be made to fully distinguish the placebo effects and echinacea eff...
Competing Interests: None declared. - Page navigation anchor for A Negative Study Can Provide Useful InformationA Negative Study Can Provide Useful InformationShow More
This paper calls to mind a statement attributed to Senator Pete Domenici: "If you torture the numbers long enough they will confess to anything."
Despite the authors' strenuous effort to wrest something significant from the results this is essentially a negative study; none of the interventions, placebo or otherwise, had any appreciable impact on the cold. This is worth knowing. The cold may be among those con...
Competing Interests: None declared. - Page navigation anchor for Author's replyAuthor's replyShow More
Responding to Dr Oliver Frank, Adelaide, Australia
Yes, I agree with these comments. The inclusion of no pill and open label arms in randomized trials could add substantively to the knowledge base, possibly in quite useful ways, and should be considered during the development and testing phases of new medications. The downside is of course the larger sample sizes that would be needed to achieve adequate statis...
Competing Interests: None declared. - Page navigation anchor for Open label placebo may further elucidate placebo effectsOpen label placebo may further elucidate placebo effectsShow More
The inclusion of a 'no pill' group and of both blinded and open label echinacea groups in this study was valuable in increasing our understanding of the beneficial and adverse effects of taking medicines with or without ingredients that are or may be pharmacologically active.
To further increase our understanding, I would like to suggest that future trials of medicines could include not only blinded placebo group...
Competing Interests: None declared.