Figures
Accentuating the negative.
In this month's Editorial the PLoS Medicine Editors discuss the importance of valid negative results, and their immediate and open availability, in maintaining the integrity of the medical literature, especially when clinical effectiveness is at issue. The Editorial suggests that physicians mindful of Hippocrates's vow "first do no harm" should appreciate that a study "that questions the accepted or desired way of doing things can be at least as important as one that supports a new approach." Given the US movement to undertake comparative effectiveness research (CER)—which calls for a wide range of study designs to "assist consumers, clinicians and policy-makers in making informed decisions"—the Editorial argues for transparency in the design and reporting of all types of research, including data that cast doubt on prevailing practices.
Image Credit: Image adapted from photograph by Tony Fischer, Carpe Diem Photography, at flickr.com
Citation: (2009) PLoS Medicine Issue Image | Vol. 6(9) September 2009. PLoS Med 6(9): ev06.i09. https://doi.org/10.1371/image.pmed.v06.i09
Published: September 29, 2009
Copyright: © 2009 Tony Fischer. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
In this month's Editorial the PLoS Medicine Editors discuss the importance of valid negative results, and their immediate and open availability, in maintaining the integrity of the medical literature, especially when clinical effectiveness is at issue. The Editorial suggests that physicians mindful of Hippocrates's vow "first do no harm" should appreciate that a study "that questions the accepted or desired way of doing things can be at least as important as one that supports a new approach." Given the US movement to undertake comparative effectiveness research (CER)—which calls for a wide range of study designs to "assist consumers, clinicians and policy-makers in making informed decisions"—the Editorial argues for transparency in the design and reporting of all types of research, including data that cast doubt on prevailing practices.
Image Credit: Image adapted from photograph by Tony Fischer, Carpe Diem Photography, at flickr.com