Does a placebo effect really occur in dogs afflicted by hip osteoarthritis as measured by force platform gait analysis?

Abstract

A recent study investigated the therapeutic response of dogs afflicted by hip osteoarthritis when evaluating therapeutic modalities compared to a negative (placebo) control group. Authors suggested a placebo effect based on peak vertical force measurement. In addition, small effect size for each of the tested therapeutics as well as the extremely large sample size needed (>450) to discern therapeutic efficacy using force platform gait analysis were reported. We wish to express our concerns regarding the eligibility criteria used to select the studied cohort, the small effect size, and the placebo effect reported in force platform gait analysis. © 2013 Moreau et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.