BMJ  2004;329:3-4 (3 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7456.3

Editorial

New interventional procedures

Unlike drugs, are implemented despite paucity of evidence

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

In contrast to pharmaceuticals, new surgical and other invasive procedures often enter clinical practice without assessment of their safety and efficacy. There is usually no guidance on their use. As a result, patients are offered treatments without access to adequate information on the nature and likelihood of benefits and harms; clinicians are left uncertain as to which innovations to adopt; and hospitals and healthcare systems have difficulty managing the risks that these procedures pose.¹

Why does this happen? A fundamental reason is the poor evidence base for new interventional procedures, which has a number of causes. Unlike new pharmaceuticals, procedures do not usually have a commercial sponsor, which makes research harder to fund. When procedures entail a medical device, manufacturers have some incentive to fund evaluations, but differences in the regulatory regimes for drugs and devices, and in manufacturers' priorities for investment in research, mean that randomised trials are scarce. . . . [Full text of this article]

(tom.dent@nice.nhs.uk)

National Institute for Clinical Excellence, London WC1V 6NA

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Guidance has high priority in interventional procedures: Objective evidence needs to be provided

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This article has been cited by other articles:

• Joseph, A. E (2004). Guidance has high priority in interventional procedures: Objective evidence needs to be provided. BMJ 329: 351-351 [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

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New Interventional Procedures - inadequate guidance and regulation

Anton E Joseph
bmj.com, 8 Jul 2004 [Full text]

Regulatory body for safety and efficacy of interventional procedures is an urgent priority

Anton E Joseph
bmj.com, 13 Jul 2004 [Full text]

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