ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we will consider the design, implementation, challenges, and conclusions of two controlled trials. They have been chosen because the issues that arose are common to many trials in surgery (Table 16.1). Both of them are published [1,3]. The rst, the Guy’s Hospital Suction Trial (GHST), is a single institution study of a very common mechanistic intervention in which the research question was whether to apply or not apply suction to a
CONTENTS
16.1 Introduction ................................................................................................ 213 16.2 The Guy’s Hospital Suction Trial ............................................................. 214
16.2.1 Background and Reasons for Doing the Study ......................... 214 16.2.2 Methodology .................................................................................. 217
16.2.2.1 Concealment/Masking/Blinding ................................. 217 16.2.2.2 Means of Unbiased Allocation ...................................... 217
16.2.3 Conduct of the Trial ....................................................................... 218 16.2.4 Results ............................................................................................. 220 16.2.5 Impact on Practice .......................................................................... 220
16.3 The Mesothelioma and Radical Surgery Trial ....................................... 221 16.3.1 Background ..................................................................................... 221 16.3.2 Methodology ..................................................................................222
