The recent publication of meta-analytic studies that both deny virtually any effectiveness to placebo effect, and attribute to it till 75% of therapeutic efficacy of medical treatments shows the need for a new assessment of this problem. In our study, after a short definition of the effect and a review of the explanations that were given to the effect, we focus our attention on methodological problems, regarding both previous research and meta-analysis, that are published in increasing number in the last few years. Unfortunately, a far exceeding number of clinical research appear subject to many methodological doubts, and meta-analytic studies must discard from 85 to 98% of them; but meta-analysis too appear a mean to obtain any result that one wants to obtain. However, also in reference to alternative medicine, the problem of the placebo deserves a very careful attention, also from the ethical point of view.
L'effetto placebo / R. Luccio, E. Salvadori. - In: RICERCHE DI PSICOLOGIA. - ISSN 0391-6081. - 25:4(2002), pp. 7-38. [10.3280/RIP2002-004001]
L'effetto placebo
E. Salvadori
2002
Abstract
The recent publication of meta-analytic studies that both deny virtually any effectiveness to placebo effect, and attribute to it till 75% of therapeutic efficacy of medical treatments shows the need for a new assessment of this problem. In our study, after a short definition of the effect and a review of the explanations that were given to the effect, we focus our attention on methodological problems, regarding both previous research and meta-analysis, that are published in increasing number in the last few years. Unfortunately, a far exceeding number of clinical research appear subject to many methodological doubts, and meta-analytic studies must discard from 85 to 98% of them; but meta-analysis too appear a mean to obtain any result that one wants to obtain. However, also in reference to alternative medicine, the problem of the placebo deserves a very careful attention, also from the ethical point of view.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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