Category: Clinical Trials
Crowdfunding unproven stem cell treatments: overstated efficacy, unstated risks
Crowdfunding campaigns for unproven stem cell treatments exaggerate the benefits and underemphasize the risks, all the while raising considerable funds and generating social media buzz.
Essential Oils in the Ambulance
Aromatherapy with essential oils is pseudoscience, backed only with low quality studies guaranteed to show a placebo effect. Their growing popularity warns that better science education is needed.
PLOS ONE, peer review, and a “crappy” acupuncture study
Meta-analyses can sometimes suffer from the "GIGO problem" (garbage in, garbage out). The publication of a "crappy" acupuncture "network meta-analysis" for acupuncture and chronic constipation illustrates the GIGO problem on steroids and reveals a problem with peer review.
TIC’D OFF
Two years ago we discussed the TicTocStop, a dental appliance that the inventors assured us would help mitigate the symptoms of Tourette Syndrome. In the intervening years things have...not gone well. This illustrates the need for skepticism regarding questionable medical claims, and the importance of initiatives like AllTrials to ensure the good, the bad, and the ugly research is available to everyone.
Stem Cell Tourism Comes Home
You used to have to go to China to get ripped off by fraudulent stem cell clinics. Now you can get conned right here at home.
Bee Venom is Snake Oil
Bee venom acupuncture is a double-barrel pseudoscience that provides new example of an old problem - the use of poor quality preclinical research to justify the inclusion of nonsense in medicine.
Dog breath and stinky studies: Do pets need to be knocked out for dental care?
Most professional veterinary organizations recommend anesthesia to ensure thorough dental care for pet dogs and cats. Despite this, some companies are trying to mislead the pet-owning public by claiming they have high quality evidence showing they provide the same benefit without the risks. Their research smells worse than old chihuahua breath.
PSA Screening for Prostate Cancer
PSA testing is controversial. A new study finds that PSA screening for prostate cancer offers no survival benefits.
The Debate Is Over: Antidepressants DO Work Better Than Placebo
The idea that antidepressants are no more effective than placebo has been put to rest. They clearly work when used appropriately, although the effect size is not as large as the published studies have suggested.
Where Are We With the Replication “Crisis”
The replication problem is not as bad as the sensational reporting has suggested. But it is still a legitimate issue that needs to be addressed.