Description
Book SynopsisRandomized controlled trials are one of the most powerful and revolutionary tools of research. This book is a convenient and accessible description of the underlying principles and practice of randomized controlled trials and their role in clinical decision-making.
Structured in a jargon-free question-and-answer format, each chapter provides concise and understandable information on a different aspect of randomized controlled trials, from the basics of trial design and terminology to the interpretation of results and their use in driving evidence-based medicine. The authors end each chapter with their musings, going beyond the evidence or citations, and sometimes even beyond orthodox correctness to share their thoughts and concerns about different aspects of randomized controlled trials, and their role within the health system.
Updated to include insights from the last decade, this second edition challenges over-reliance on randomized controlled trials by debatin
Trade Review
“This well written book is both concise and comprehensive. This is the sort of book that students will appreciate when they first learn about clinical trials the busy health professional will use as a quick reference guide the lay person will understand and the experienced investigator will benefit from because it will challenge and defy current paradigms.” (HerbalGram, February 2009)
"The most useful, important, relevant, thoughtful, and thought-provoking books about medical research … .The readers of this new book may feel a little confused or tired or worried about aspects of clinical trials, but they are sure to find a great deal of help and support at the same time. Congratulations—as always—to Alejandro Jadad and the unstoppable Murray Enkin." (Birth, September 2008)
Table of ContentsForeword by Dr. Sholom Glouberman.
Preface to the first edition.
Acknowledgments.
Acknowledgments from the first edition.
Introduction to the second edition.
Introduction to the first edition.
1. Randomized controlled trials: the basics.
2. Types of randomized controlled trials.
3. Bias in randomized controlled trials.
4. Assessing the quality of randomized controlled trials: why, what, how, and by whom?.
5. Reporting and interpreting individual trials: the essentials.
6. From individual trials to groups of trials: reviews, meta-analyses, and guidelines.
7. From trials to decisions: the basis of evidence-based health care.
8. Ethics and clinical trials: are they compatible?.
9. Reprise: more musings.
Index
