Key result
Among 25 orthopaedic RCTs with negative results, none had adequate power to detect a small effect size and 48% lacked power to detect a large effect size.
Population
33 randomised, controlled trials published in the 1997 issues of the British and American volumes of the…
Design
Review
Authors
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Negative orthopaedic RCT results warrant cautious clinical interpretation; leaves open whether many interventions truly lack meaningful effects.
Many randomized controlled trials in orthopaedics are underpowered, risking false-negative results for clinically important differences.
Freedman et al. (2001) conducted a review in Orthopaedic conditions (n=33). Orthopaedic randomised controlled trials was evaluated on Statistical power to detect small, medium, and large effect sizes. Among 25 orthopaedic RCTs with negative results, none had adequate power to detect a small effect size and 48% lacked power to detect a large effect size.
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