Challenges to EBM Quiz Flashcards
Identify the type of promotional technique used by pharmaceutical vendors and found in this statement offered to you over lunch: “I was just speaking to Dr. Fotis and he told me how much success he had using gabapentin to treat pain associated with diabetic neuropathy. Isn’t Dr. Fotis a genius?”
A) This is an example of evidence based medicine
B) This is a technique which is used to promote off label use of a medication
C) The statement is an example of a red herring
D) The statement is an example of an ad hominem attack
B – also an example of an appeal to authority.
T or F: Pharmaceutical manufacturers would never promote prescription medications to children
False
Gandhi S, TenBarge A, Caraher K, Winters-Williams L, Fotis, M. Research poster MCM 2011 studied the reporting of adverse effects in clinical trials that claimed a benefit of a medication. They found that adverse events are:
A) Always reported in published clinical trails
B) Never reported in published clinical trials
C) Commonly omitted in published clinical trials
D) All of the above
C
You review a study about a new medication Provasic by “Devlin MacGregor Pharmaceuticals” for the prevention of surgical bleeding. At a dinner symposium held in chicago, Dr. Charles Nichols concludes by stating Provasic has absolutely no side effects. The crowd erupts into applause.
Since this drug promotes thrombosis, you decide:
A) Transfer your life savings to purchase Devlin-MacGregor stock certificates
B) Make sure the investigators looked for nausea, vomiting, constipation and rash
C) Make sure the investigators looked for evidence of hepatitis and excessive clotting such as occlusion, PE, DVT, stroke, MI, etc.
D) Dr. Nichols did not murder Dr. Kimble’s wife
C – you should also verify that all patients were accounted for, that an intent to treat protocol was followed, and that patients were evaluated for safety over an appropriate time frame
