3 ms·
This is a research question you can't answer with a prospective analysis either, because it's not ethical in most cases to randomize whether you're removing a b
by mlyle 3y ago
This is a research question you can't answer with a prospective analysis either, because it's not ethical in most cases to randomize whether you're removing a body part.
The best we're going to do is a careful case control study (and research in animal models). And the evidence is enough to imply strongly that we should expend a little more effort to avoid removing the thymus.
- Calavar 3y ago> This is a research question you can't answer with a prospective analysis either, because it's not ethical to randomize whether you're removing a body part. But that's exactly what we did with the appendix, multiple times [1, 2]. [1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26080338/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26080338/ [2] https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmoa2014320 https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmoa2014320
- mlyle 3y agoI had thought about this and had amended this to "in most cases" before you posted. If the standard of care is removing the appendix, and you have a strong reason to believe that something less may be superior, you may be able to conduct a randomized trial. But any other combination of facts is going to be hard for an IRB to swallow.