Reporting clinical trials: full access to all the data.
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Authors' right to access to all data obtained in their study (+info)
Enhancing reviews of psychological treatments with pediatric populations: thoughts on next steps.
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OBJECTIVE: To critique the approach used by the Journal of Pediatric Psychology for reviews of empirical support for psychological treatments and provide recommendations to enhance the scientific review of interventions. METHODS: Application of the Chambless et al. (1996, 1998) criteria to select and describe empirically supported treatments was evaluated from the standpoint of method, theory, and clinical significance. RESULTS: While reviews of treatments based on the Chambless et al. (1996, 1998) criteria have provided valuable information, they are limited by reliance on statistical significance rather than effect sizes and also need to consider systematically the theoretical and clinical significance of intervention findings. CONCLUSIONS: Reviews of psychological treatments conducted with pediatric populations would be enhanced by inclusion of information concerning effect sizes, theory specification, and clinical significance. In addition, broadening the focus of initial reviews to include meta-analyses, clinical significance, and theory-guided interventions would enhance the scientific knowledge base of psychological interventions with pediatric populations. (+info)
Publets: clinical judgement on the web.
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The Internet is now a major channel for publishing medical research data and documents, including clinical practice guidelines. It is now possible to capture guidelines in a computer interpretable form opening up the capability of using the internet (and intra/extranets etc.) to deliver patient-specific advice and other services. A development lifecycle and technology for publishing and delivering services at the point of care ("publets") are described. As with all new technologies, however, these new methods entail risks as well as opportunities. The paper closes with a discussion of quality requirements and an argument that publets should include a safety case as an integral part of their content. (+info)
Electronic journal access: how does it affect the print subscription price?
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OBJECTIVE: This study examined the rates of print journal subscription price increases according to the type of available electronic access. The types of access included: electronic priced separately from the print, combination print with "free online" access, and aggregated, defined here as electronic access purchased as part of a collection. The percentages of print price increases were compared to each other and to that for titles available only in print. The authors were not aware of prior objective research in this area. METHODS: The authors analyzed the percentage print price increases of 300 journals over a five-year time period. The titles were grouped according to type of available electronic access. The median and mean percentage print price increases were calculated and plotted for all titles within each group. RESULTS: Using both the median and the mean to look at the percentage print price increases over five years, it was obvious that print prices for journals with electronic access exceeded journals that did not offer an electronic option. Electronic priced separately averaged 3% to 5% higher than print only titles using both measures. Combination print with "free online" access had higher increases from 1996 to 1999, but, in 2000, their percentage increases were about the same as print only titles. The rate of price increases for aggregated titles consistently went down over the past five years. Journals with no electronic option showed the lowest percentage rates of print price increase. CONCLUSIONS: The authors' findings reveal that the increases of print prices for their sample of titles were higher if a type of electronic access was offered. According to the results of this study, aggregated collections currently represent the electronic option whose percentage price increase for print prices was lowest. However, the uneven fluctuations in rates of subscription prices revealed that the pricing of journals with electronic access is still evolving. More study is recommended to see if the trends observed in this study are sustained over a longer time period. (+info)
JAT's impact factor--room for improvement? Journal of Analytical Toxicology.
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The impact factor of a scientific journal is simply the ratio of the number of citations to the number of citable items (articles and reviews) over a given time period, usually two years after the year of publication. Trends in the impact factor of Journal of Analytical Toxicology (JAT) are reviewed and compared with other leading journals in the forensic sciences and toxicology. In particular, the journals that frequently cite JAT articles (citing journals) and the journals cited in articles published in JAT (cited journals) are compared and contrasted. The reasons for citing a particular article are considered, and some suggestions are made for improving the impact factor of JAT, if this is deemed necessary. This could be achieved in a number of ways, such as speeding the editorial-handling and peer-review processes, by including one or more invited review articles in each issue of the journal, or by increasing the number of references cited so the references/article ratio increases. Regardless of journal impact factor, an article should be judged by its usefulness to the field and not the prestige of the journal where it is published. (+info)
A historical overview of pressure ulcer literature of the past 35 years.
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This article discusses a study of publications on pressure ulcers from 1965 to 1999 using the information available in Medline. Results show that .06% of all articles relate to pressure ulcers. Of all the articles about pressure ulcers, 49% were research articles and 51% were clinical articles. When comparing the total percentage of articles on pressure ulcers to the costs of pressure ulcers in healthcare (1.3% of the total Netherland healthcare budget), one can conclude that clinicians and scientists insufficiently appreciate pressure ulcers as a problem. The number and the proportion of pressure ulcer articles are growing, as well as initiatives to urge researchers studying the same topic to start international working groups, but more research is needed. This article offers insight into the current status of pressure ulcer literature and addresses some reasons for the lack of interest in the pressure ulcer problem. (+info)
Ethical issues in human genome epidemiology: a case study based on the Japanese American Family Study in Seattle, Washington.
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Recent completion of the draft sequence of the human genome has been greeted with both excitement and skepticism, and the potential of this accomplishment for advancing public health has been tempered by ethical concerns about the protection of human subjects. This commentary explores ethical issues arising in human genome epidemiology by using a case study approach based on the ongoing Japanese American Family Study at the University of Washington in Seattle (1994-2003). Ethical issues encountered in designing the study, collecting the data, and reporting the study results are considered. When developing studies, investigators must consider whether to restrict the study to specific racial or ethnic groups and whether community involvement is appropriate. Once the study design is in place, further ethical issues emerge, including obtaining informed consent for DNA banking and protecting the privacy and confidentiality of family members. Finally, investigators must carefully consider whether to report genotype results to study participants and whether pedigrees illustrating the results of the study will be published. Overall, the promise of genomics for improving public health must be pursued based on the fundamental ethical principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice. (+info)
Number and size of randomized trials reported in general health care journals from 1948 to 1997.
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BACKGROUND: Randomized trials are important for controlling selection biases, and where sufficient numbers of participants are involved, have the potential to yield reliable estimates of treatment effects. METHODS: We investigated trends in the number and size of randomized trials reported in general health care journals from 1948 to 1997. From the handsearching of 18 general health care journals we collected data on the number of reports of randomized trials in each journal per year, and the number of participants in each trial. RESULTS: A total of 5503 reports of trials were identified in 18 general health care journals. More than a third appeared in the British Medical Journal. The peak period for trial reports was the mid 1980s, with more in 1986 than any other year (242). By the mid 1990s the number per year had declined by a third. Trials with fewer than 100 participants accounted for most of the reports (69%). In spite of the overall decline in the number of trial reports, those involving 100 participants or more continued to increase throughout the period studied. CONCLUSIONS: The continued increase in the number of larger trials reported is encouraging, especially if it represents an increase in the size of trials more generally. Further research is needed to determine whether the trends over time identified here are reflective more of trends in the actual conduct of, rather than simply the reporting, of randomized trials. (+info)