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AREDS Investigators Distort Findings
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| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings. |
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In my opinion, the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) investigators
promoted a nonsignificant result into a conclusive recommendation.1 Here is how they did it.
The primary study outcomes for AREDS are explicitly stated in the "Participants
and Methods" section of the article: (1) progression to advanced age-related
macular degeneration (AMD) and (2) a 15-letter decrease in visual acuity.
These outcomes were to be evaluated in all patients by independent tests of
significance of the 2 primary treatments. This carefully specified primary
analysis led to 4 tests, none of which was statistically significant. One,
testing the effect of zinc on progression to advanced AMD, achieved a level
of significance defined by the investigators as suggestive.
Despite these negative results, the investigators recommend combined
treatment with antioxidants and zinc based on their secondary analysis. Two
analytic approaches provided them with significant results. First, the authors
restricted the analysis to a subgroup. The . . . [Full Text of this Article]
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