Requiring scientists to document their methods caused positive results in medical trials to plunge | Behind The Black

abernard102@gmail.com 2015-08-16

Summary:

"The uncertainty of science: The requirement that medical researchers register in detail the methods they intend to use in their clinical trials, both to record their data as well as document their outcomes, caused a significant drop in trials producing positive results. 'A 1997 US law mandated the registry’s creation, requiring researchers from 2000 to record their trial methods and outcome measures before collecting data. The study found that in a sample of 55 large trials testing heart-disease treatments, 57% of those published before 2000 reported positive effects from the treatments. But that figure plunged to just 8% in studies that were conducted after 2000. Study author Veronica Irvin, a health scientist at Oregon State University in Corvallis, says this suggests that registering clinical studies is leading to more rigorous research. Writing on his NeuroLogica Blog, neurologist Steven Novella of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, called the study 'encouraging' but also 'a bit frightening' because it casts doubt on previous positive results.' In other words, before they were required to document their methods, research into new drugs or treatments would prove the success of those drugs or treatment more than half the time. Once they had to document their research methods, however, the drugs or treatments being tested almost never worked ..."

Link:

http://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/requiring-scientists-to-document-their-methods-caused-positive-results-in-medical-trials-to-plunge/

From feeds:

Open Access Tracking Project (OATP) » abernard102@gmail.com

Tags:

oa.new oa.comment oa.studies oa.data oa.clinical_trials oa.pharma

Date tagged:

08/16/2015, 08:38

Date published:

08/16/2015, 04:38