Placebo effectivess impresses
When testing Abilify, how was it determined that is a placebo is no better than Abilify ?
The box would quantify the benefits and side effects of Abilify used in combination with other antidepressants, drawing on the larger of the two six-week trials that formed the basis of its approval by the F.D.A. First, it would show how the drug scored versus a placebo (in Abilify's case, not much: only three points lower on a 60-point scale, and it resolved depression for only 10 percent of patients -- that is, 25 percent with Abilify versus 15 percent with just the placebo).
Steven Woloshin and Lisa M. Schwartz are professors of medicine at the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice and the authors of "Know Your Chances: Understanding Health Statistics."
OPINION
Think Inside the Box
By STEVEN WOLOSHIN and LISA M. SCHWARTZ
Published: July 4, 2011
We list vital facts on food packages. Why not do the same for drugs?