CONSENT RATES IN CLINICAL TRIALS
Goodman and Black4 suggested that consent rates should be included in the results section of published papers. These researchers found that refusal rates in three studies varied widely (49%, 37%, 12.5%). Thus a high consent rate may signify too much pressure by the researcher; a low rate of consent would indicate that patients had residual doubts and might suggest a lack of confidence in the investigator. Institution ethics committees should take an interest in such figures.




