Lewis John A, Jonsson Bertil, Kreutz Gottfried, Sampaio Cristina, van Zwieten-Boot Barbara
Hatch Green Cottage, Chartham Hatch, Canterbury, Kent CT4 7LP, UK.
Lancet. 2002 Apr 13;359(9314):1337-40. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(02)08277-6.
A revised version of the Declaration of Helsinki, issued in October, 2000, remains a vital expression of medical ethics, and deserves unanimous support. A strict interpretation of the declaration seems to rule out clinical trials that use a placebo control group whenever licensed therapeutic methods already exist, preferring active controls. Although the efficacy of some new medicines can be satisfactorily established without the use of a placebo, for others the judicious use of placebo remains essential to establish their effectiveness.
2000年10月发布的《赫尔辛基宣言》修订版仍然是医学伦理的重要体现，值得一致支持。对该宣言的严格解读似乎排除了在已有许可治疗方法时使用安慰剂对照组的临床试验，而倾向于使用活性对照组。尽管有些新药的疗效无需使用安慰剂就能令人满意地确定，但对其他一些药物而言，明智地使用安慰剂对于确定其有效性仍然至关重要。
