Tag: meta-analysis

Acupuncture For Backpain in Pregnancy – More Terrible Reporting

Another meta-analysis shows that acupuncture is nothing but an elaborate placebo, and again is misrepresented in the press.

/ November 23, 2022
Acupuncture

ASCO endorses “integrative oncology” quackery for cancer pain

Last week, the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Society for Integrative Oncology published guidelines for treating cancer pain. These guidelines endorsed quackery like reflexology and acupuncture. The infiltration of quackademic medicine continues apace in oncology.

/ November 21, 2022
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

How to design high quality acupuncture trials: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Acupuncture advocates have published guidelines for "rigorous" acupuncture randomized controlled trials. While that sounds good on the surface, the devil is in the details, which reveal that the dedication to scientific rigor is perhaps not so strong.

/ April 11, 2022
Ivermectin repurposing

Ivermectin is the new hydroxychloroquine, take 4: Bret Weinstein misrepresents meta-analyses

Evolutionary biologist turned podcaster Bret Weinstein has promoted the anthelmintic drug ivermectin as a highly effective treatment for COVID-19 based on a massive misunderstanding of a meta-analysis. Here, we correct this misunderstanding and explain why ivermectin is unlikely to be effective against COVID-19.

/ August 2, 2021
Acupuncture

More evidence that acupuncture doesn’t work for chronic pain

Acupuncture is a theatrical placebo whose real history has been retconned beyond recognition. A new systematic review of systematic reviews of acupuncture for chronic pain highlights that conclusion and catalogues the many weaknesses in the design of acupuncture clinical trials.

/ January 6, 2020

The Red Meat Controversy

A new paper flies in the face of current recommendations and concludes we simply don't know the health risks of eating red and processed meat.

/ October 2, 2019
Acupuncture needles

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.

/ May 7, 2018

False Claims for Acupuncture

Acupuncture proponents claim that acupuncture works for a long list of medical indications, and claiming that this is supported by evidence. Meanwhile the actual evidence, fairly and rigorously evaluated, is negative.

/ December 6, 2017

Go ahead, have that coffee

Coffee drinkers, rejoice. A new paper shows positive associations between consumption and an array of health outcomes.

/ November 30, 2017

Afterword. Chiropractic and The New York Times. Is the newspaper TRYING to prove Trump right?

The New York Times had to go an publish "For Bad Backs, It May Be Time to Rethink Biases About Chiropractors" right after my Friday extravaganza, "Spinal Manipulation and the JAMA Meta-Analysis: An Analysis of Fuel. Sigh. Doody [sic] Calls.

/ May 2, 2017