Revisiting histories of anti-racist thought and activism

This piece reconsiders histories of anti-racist thought and practice, including the linkages between anti-racisms and other traditions of liberatory thought. We argue that anti-racism should be understood as a strand in radical thought linking internationalism, institutional critique and street activism, in the process interfeeding with other social movements. The traditions of anti-racist thought discussed in this special issue exemplify these cross-cutting influences

Patient Information Leaflets for placebo-controlled surgical trials:A review of current practice and recommendations for developers

IntroductionInformed consent for participation in an RCT is an important ethical and legal requirement. In placebo surgical trials further issues are raised and to date this has not been explored. Patient information leaflets (PILs) are a core component of the informed consent process. This study aimed to investigate the key content of PILs for recently completed placebo-controlled trials of invasive procedures, including surgery, to highlight areas of good practice, identify gaps in information provision for trials of this type, and provide recommendations for practice.MethodsPILs were sought from trials included in a recent systematic review of placebo controlled trials of invasive procedures, including surgery. Trial characteristics and data on surgical and placebo interventions under evaluation was extracted. Directed content analysis was applied, informed by published regulatory and good practice guidance on PIL content and existing research on placebo controlled surgical trials. Results were analysed using descriptive statistics and presented as a narrative summary.ResultsOf the 62 eligible RCTs, authors of 59 trials were contactable and 14 PILs were received for analysis. At least 50% of all PILs included content on general trial design. Explanations of how the placebo differs or is similar to the surgical intervention (i.e. fidelity) was reported in 6 (43%) of the included PILs. Over half (57%) of the PILs included information on the potential therapeutic benefits of the surgical intervention. One (7%) included information on potential indirect therapeutic benefits from invasive components of the placebo. Five (36%) presented the known risks of the placebo intervention, whilst 8 (57%) presented information on the known risk of the surgical intervention. A range of terms was used across the PILs to describe the placebo component, including ‘control’, ‘mock’, and ‘sham’.ConclusionDevelopers of PILs for placebo-controlled surgical trials should carefully consider the use of language (e.g. sham, mock), be explicit about how the placebo differs (or is similar to) the surgical intervention, and provide balanced presentations of potential benefits and risks of the surgical intervention separately from the placebo. Further research is required to determine optimal approaches to design and deliver this information for these trials. <br/