Research methods in sales ethics: a review of the empirical literature

From a review of the empirical sales ethics literature, this paper reports findings about some of the research methods used to investigate the decision-making of sales practitioners under ethical conditions. The review identifies that several of the methodological deficiencies raised by previous reviewers of the literature have not been adequately addressed by subsequent researchers. The paper primarily reviews quantitative research studies because of their prevalence in the empirical sales ethics literature, and because studies similar to these have contributed much to marketing ethics theory. This discussion also focuses on sampling and data collection methods, the treatment of respondent and non-response bias, the use of instruments and scales, and the application of the scenario technique. Some suggestions are made that would improve the research methods in each of these areas.

Warming up and stretching for athletes : A meta-analysis of the research literature from 2000 to 2006 in light of current athletic practice

This review presents the methods used to investigate the effects of various stretching protocols on muscular force and performance, in light of current individual and elite athlete stretching practices in their warm-up routines. A meta-analysis of peer-reviewed articles between the years of 2000 and 2007 revealed the majority of studies support the notion that static stretching is detrimental to muscular force and performance. However, the meta-analysis also revealed that the protocols used do not necessarily match current practice with many elite athletes. This article proposes, based on the mismatch between research and practice, that further studies must address this issue in further exploring the role of stretching in pre-training and competition warm-up routines.

Testing search strategies for systematic reviews in the Medline literature database through PubMed

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Using Prior Information from the Medical Literature in GWAS of Oral Cancer Identifies Novel Susceptibility Variant on Chromosome 4-the AdAPT Method

Background: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) require large sample sizes to obtain adequate statistical power, but it may be possible to increase the power by incorporating complementary data. In this study we investigated the feasibility of automatically retrieving information from the medical literature and leveraging this information in GWAS. Methods: We developed a method that searches through PubMed abstracts for pre-assigned keywords and key concepts, and uses this information to assign prior probabilities of association for each single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) with the phenotype of interest - the Adjusting Association Priors with Text (AdAPT) method. Association results from a GWAS can subsequently be ranked in the context of these priors using the Bayes False Discovery Probability (BFDP) framework. We initially tested AdAPT by comparing rankings of known susceptibility alleles in a previous lung cancer GWAS, and subsequently applied it in a two-phase GWAS of oral cancer. Results: Known lung cancer susceptibility SNPs were consistently ranked higher by AdAPT BFDPs than by p-values. In the oral cancer GWAS, we sought to replicate the top five SNPs as ranked by AdAPT BFDPs, of which rs991316, located in the ADH gene region of 4q23, displayed a statistically significant association with oral cancer risk in the replication phase (per-rare-allele log additive p-value [p(trend)] = 2.5 x 10(-3)). The combined OR for having one additional rare allele was 0.83 (95% CI: 0.76-0.90), and this association was independent of previously identified susceptibility SNPs that are associated with overall UADT cancer in this gene region. We also investigated if rs991316 was associated with other cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract (UADT), but no additional association signal was found. Conclusion: This study highlights the potential utility of systematically incorporating prior knowledge from the medical literature in genome-wide analyses using the AdAPT methodology. AdAPT is available online (url: http://services.gate.ac.uk/lld/gwas/service/config).

The in vitro evidence for an effect of high homeopathic potencies--a systematic review of the literature

OBJECTIVE: Systematic assessment of the in vitro research on high potency effects. METHOD: Publications of experiments were collected through databases, experts, previous reviews, citation tracking. Inclusion criteria: stepwise agitated dilutions <10(-23); cells or molecules from human or animal. Experiments were assessed with the modified SAPEH score. RESULTS: From 75 publications, 67 experiments (1/3 of them replications) were evaluated. Nearly 3/4 of them found a high potency effect, and 2/3 of those 18 that scored 6 points or more and controlled contamination. Nearly 3/4 of all replications were positive. Design and experimental models of the reviewed experiments were inhomogenous, most were performed on basophiles. CONCLUSIONS: Even experiments with a high methodological standard could demonstrate an effect of high potencies. No positive result was stable enough to be reproduced by all investigators. A general adoption of succussed controls, randomization and blinding would strengthen the evidence of future experiments.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries in Children and Adolescents: A Review of the Recent Literature

In contrast to the treatment of avulsion lesions of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) the management of intrasubstance ACL tears in the skeletally immature patient remains controversial. Prospective studies could show that conservative treatment results in severe instability with concomitant intraarticular damage and poor function of the knee. Reconstruction of a torn ACL always carries the risk of damaging the open growth plates; with consecutively affecting the longitudinal or axial growth of the lower extremity either on the femoral or the tibial side. Thus, several surgical procedures are available to prevent adverse events mentioned above. The purpose of this study is to review the recent literature regarding the treatment algorithm for ACL injuries in skeletally immature patients. This review will (1) investigate the indications for ACL surgery in children; (2) determine if a surgical procedure is clinically superior in skeletally immature patients; and (3) correlate the adverse events with the surgical technique.

The need for transparency and good practices in the qPCR literature

Two surveys of over 1,700 publications whose authors use quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) reveal a lack of transparent and comprehensive reporting of essential technical information. Reporting standards are significantly improved in publications that cite the Minimum Information for Publication of Quantitative Real-Time PCR Experiments (MIQE) guidelines, although such publications are still vastly outnumbered by those that do not.

A systematic review of glomerular hyperfiltration assessment and definition in the medical literature.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Evaluation of glomerular hyperfiltration (GH) is difficult; the variable reported definitions impede comparisons between studies. A clear and universal definition of GH would help in comparing results of trials aimed at reducing GH. This study assessed how GH is measured and defined in the literature. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS Three databases (Embase, MEDLINE, CINAHL) were systematically searched using the terms "hyperfiltration" or "glomerular hyperfiltration". All studies reporting a GH threshold or studying the effect of a high GFR in a continuous manner against another outcome of interest were included. RESULTS The literature search was performed from November 2012 to February 2013 and updated in August 2014. From 2013 retrieved studies, 405 studies were included. Threshold use to define GH was reported in 55.6% of studies. Of these, 88.4% used a single threshold and 11.6% used numerous thresholds adapted to participant sex or age. In 29.8% of the studies, the choice of a GH threshold was not based on a control group or literature references. After 2004, the use of GH threshold use increased (P<0.001), but the use of a control group to precisely define that GH threshold decreased significantly (P<0.001); the threshold did not differ among pediatric, adult, or mixed-age studies. The GH threshold ranged from 90.7 to 175 ml/min per 1.73 m(2) (median, 135 ml/min per 1.73 m(2)). CONCLUSION Thirty percent of studies did not justify the choice of threshold values. The decrease of GFR in the elderly was rarely considered in defining GH. From a methodologic point of view, an age- and sex-matched control group should be used to define a GH threshold.

A review of the published literature on interventions to increase compliance with follow-up outpatient medical appointments in primary care practice

Effective strategies for patient follow-up compliance in family practice are essential for the prevention and early detection of disease with the consequences of decreasing morbidity and mortality. With effective appointment reminder systems in place, physicians can better manage the overall health of their patients by providing preventive care as well. This literature review examines intervention strategies used by the authors, the compliance rate of appointment adherence using these techniques, as well as theories relating to study outcomes. The findings of this study may be used as an educational tool by practices to suggest which intervention strategies might be the most effective for their clinic.^

Errors in the administration of medication in inpatient hospitals: A systematic review of the research literature on commercial computerized physician order entry systems

Errors in the administration of medication represent a significant loss of medical resources and pose life altering or life threatening risks to patients. This paper considered the question, what impact do Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) systems have on medication errors in the hospital inpatient environment? Previous reviews have examined evidence of the impact of CPOE on medication errors, but have come to ambiguous conclusions as to the impact of CPOE and decision support systems (DSS). Forty-three papers were identified. Thirty-one demonstrated a significant reduction in prescribing error rates for all or some drug types; decreases in minor errors were most often reported. Several studies reported increases in the rate of duplicate orders and failures to remove contraindicated drugs, often attributed to inappropriate design or to an inability to operate the system properly. The evidence on the effectiveness of CPOE to reduce errors in medication administration is compelling though it is limited by modest study sample sizes and designs. ^