What is a Placebo?
A placebo is an inactive pill, liquid, or powder that has no treatment value. In clinical trials, experimental treatments are often compared with placebo to assess the treatment’s effectiveness. In some studies, the participants in the control group will receive a placebo instead of an active drug or treatment.
A placebo is an inactive pill, liquid, or powder that has no treatment value. In clinical trials, experimental treatments are often compared with placebos to assess the experimental treatment’s effectiveness. In some studies, the participants in the control group will receive a placebo instead of an active drug or experimental treatment. What is a control or control group? A control is the standard by which experimental observations are evaluated. In many clinical trials, one group of patients will be given an experimental drug or treatment, while the control group is given either a standard treatment for the illness or a placebo. What are the different types of clinical trials? Treatment trials test experimental treatments, new combinations of drugs, or new approaches to surgery or radiation therapy. Prevention trials look for better ways to prevent disease in people who have never had the disease or to prevent a disease from returning. These approaches may include medicines, vaccines
Placebos are usually thought of as “sugar pills.” They are important “sham” or phony treatments that are used to keep doctors and patients honest in testing new drugs or procedures. To prove that a drug works, it is generally tested against a placebo: a “dummy” medication that should have no effect on the condition. Placebos are not only drugs. Sometimes patients get sham or phony surgery, sham radiation, or some other “pretend” treatment. Many patients and many doctors are unaware of the strength of “mind over matter.” I often tell my patients about a person who was in a study where the drug did not work. He insisted that the drug did work, and that he should be given the drug after the study ended. It turned out that he was not receiving the drug and that he wanted more of the placebo!
