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Placebo Responses Among Men With Erectile Dysfunction Enrolled in Phosphodiesterase 5 Inhibitor Trials: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Stridh A, Pontén M, Arver S, Kirsch I, Abé C, Jensen KB

JAMA network open, 2020

12 participants · 22 citations

Abstract

Importance: Placebo responses in the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED) are poorly described in the literature to date.

Objective: To quantify the association of placebo with ED outcomes among men enrolled in placebo-controlled, phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor (PDE5I) trials.

Data sources: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, a database search was conducted to identify double-blind, placebo-controlled studies using PDE5Is for the treatment of ED published from January 1, 1998, to December 31, 2018, within MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. Only articles published in the English language were included.

Study selection: Double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials of PDE5Is for ED were included. Studies were excluded if they did not provide distribution measures for statistical analysis. Study selection review assessments were conducted by 2 independent investigators. A total of 2215 studies were identified from the database search, and after review, 63 studies that included 12 564 men were analyzed.

Data extraction and synthesis: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed in abstracting data and assessing validity. Data were extracted from published reports by 2 independent reviewers. Quality assessment was performed using the Jadad scale. Data were pooled using a random-effects model.

Main outcomes and measures: The main outcome was improvement in the erectile function…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a meta-analysis, done in people. Its evidence level is 1 of 5 (Highest · pooled evidence). Pooled evidence from several studies sits at the top of the evidence pyramid. Reported size: 12 participants or records.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

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