It is a rare study that successfully combines 3 different methods and data sets to address a research question. The study by Davies et al in this issue of JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery examines the model of care offered to patients in Japan for papillary thyroid cancer. [...]
The authors of “Sham Surgery Studies in Orthopaedic Surgery May Just Be a Sham: A Systematic Review of Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trials” cast a critical eye on placebo surgical trials. We applaud any attempt to identify the methodologic limitations of scientific research and to ask researchers [...]
Delayed prescribing is a promising strategy to manage patient requests for unnecessary tests and treatments. The purpose of this study was to explore general practitioner (GP) and patient views of three communication tools (Overdiagnosis Leaflet, Dialogue Sheet and ‘Wait-and-see’ Note) to support delayed prescribing of [...]
Medical tests provide important information to guide clinical management. Overtesting, however, may cause harm to patients and the healthcare system, including through misdiagnosis, false positives, false negatives and overdiagnosis. Clinicians are ultimately responsible for test requests, and are therefore ideally positioned to prevent overtesting and [...]
We agree with other analyses of the UK Age trial on the effect on breast cancer mortality of mammographic screening from age 40 years, including observations on the small absolute risk of dying from breast cancer for women aged between 40 and 50 years, and [...]
When health conditions are labelled it is often to classify and communicate a set of symptoms. While diagnostic labelling can provide explanation for an individual’s symptoms, it can also impact how individuals and others view those symptoms. Despite existing research regarding the effects of labelling [...]
We examined the effect of ‘labels’ versus ‘descriptions’ across four asymptomatic health conditions: pre-diabetes, pre-hypertension, mild hyperlipidaemia, and chronic kidney disease stage 3A, on participants’ intentions to pursue further tests. There were four secondary objectives: 1) assessing confidence and satisfaction in their intention to test [...]
The 2018 Lancet Low Back Pain Series, comprising 3 papers written by 31 authors from disparate disciplines and 12 different countries, raised unprecedented awareness of the rising global burden of low back pain partly attributable to poor quality health care. Many people with low back pain get [...]
We examine whether new government criteria designed to reduce overuse of vitamin D testing changed testing rates in Australian women. Although testing initially declined, the reduction was not sustained. Women who had more doctor visits and who had been tested previously were more likely to [...]
Most low back pain trials have limited applicability to the emergency department (ED) because they provide treatment and measure outcomes after discharge from the ED. We investigated the efficacy and safety of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions delivered in the ED to patients with non-specific low [...]