The prescription drugs many people take may be based on inaccurate and faulty studies. This concept was based on a new study published in the August issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP). Researchers at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) and the University of California found that 30 percent of volunteer patients in a clinical drug research trial reported that they did not take their medication despite reporting to the clinical researchers that they did. This trend raises serious questions about the accuracy of study conclusions from drug studies.
This deceptive practice called “dumping”, is where individuals remove or discharge all the medication from the dispensing canister so when it was weighed at the next patient visit, it would suggest that the patient had been taking medication as instructed. Most drug usage recommendations are based on clinical trials. These types of trials have been previously regarded as one of the most reliable forms of research, and many practice guidelines for drug use are often based on trial results. The researchers noted that conclusions drawn from the results of clinical trials are based on the assumption that the prescribed study medication has been taken according to the study protocol. If a fairly high percentage of testers in these studies are “dumping” the medications, the results from these studies are invalid and the medications, even though they may already be approved, could potentially be ineffective and dangerous.
