Questioning The Value Of Animal Studies
By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Many of the most important studies that have been done in scientific research have been performed on animals and there is no doubt that we have developed treatments for many conditions as a result of this research. But researchers at Stanford are questioning the value of some of these studies.
The researchers looked at 4,445 animal studies involving neurological disorders and observed that 1,719 were reported as having a "positive" result, when in fact only 919 of them were expected to have significant results. In other words, the authors tended to overestimate the results of these studies and report them to journals.
According to the scientists at Stanford, there needs to be more careful review of these articles and their results. They don't say to stop the studies but to be more serious in reviewing them and interpreting them.
