whAt Is the PRoBleM? Different from trials for regulatory approvals of new interventions aimed to test the efficacy, comparative effectiveness research (CER) is the direct comparison of existing health‐care interventions (compared with active controls) to examine which treatment works best, for whom, and under what settings.[1] Therefore, CER is indispensable to assist consumers, clinicians, pu...

Several studies reported that moxibustion was effective in treating constipation. This systematic review assesses the clinical evidence for or against moxibustion for treating constipation. Twelve databases were searched from their inception to March 2010. Only randomized clinical trials (RCTs) were included if they compared moxibustion with placebo, sham treatment, drug therapy or no treatment...

Due to the scarcity of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) in nephrology [1], particularly in dialysis, there has been uncertainty about optimal practices. Using standardized data collection, the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS) has shown very large betweenand within-country differences in hemodialysis (HD) practices and patient outcomes. These observational data are especial...

The reporting of adverse events (AEs) in randomized clinical trials (RCTs) is often lacking in the publication of trials. Part of the problem is the way safety data are reported in RCTs. Reporting of "time to event," use of standardized incidence ratios for comparison to normal population or disease controls, use of "patient years" when reporting AE, and adequate sample size and power calculati...

To appraise the current reporting methodological quality of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) in 3 leading diabetes journals.We systematically searched the literature for RCTs in Diabetes Care, Diabetes and Diabetologia from 2011 to 2013.Characteristics were extracted based on Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) statement. Generation of allocation, concealment of allocation, in...

The randomized clinical trial (RCT) is generally accepted as the best method of comparing effects of therapies. Most often the aim of an RCT is to show that a new therapy is superior to an established therapy or placebo, i.e. they are planned and performed as superiority trials. Sometimes the aim of an RCT is just to show that a new therapy is not superior but equivalent to or not inferior to a...

OBJECTIVES Findings from nonrandomized studies on safety or efficacy of treatment in patient subgroups may trigger postlaunch randomized clinical trials (RCTs). In the analysis of such RCTs, results from nonrandomized studies are typically ignored. This study explores the trade-off between bias and power of Bayesian RCT analysis incorporating information from nonrandomized studies. STUDY DESI...

Randomized clinical trial (RCT) study design leads to one of the highest levels of evidence, and is a preferred study design over cohort studies, because randomization reduces bias and maximizes the chance that even unknown confounding factors will be balanced between treatment groups. Recent randomized clinical trials and observational studies in amblyopia can be taken together to formulate an...

background and objectives: respecting privacy means respecting individuals, their dignity and independence. it is mandatory to observe privacy in health-care systems. therefore, this study was carried out with the aim of expressing nursing students’ experience of privacy in pediatrics ward. methods: this qualitative study was done inductively using content analysis method. the participants incl...