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Epiville: Glossary -- Placebo Control

Epiville

Glossary

Placebo Control

An inactive treatment administered to the comparison arm of a placebo-controlled randomized trial which is designed to match as closely as possible the experience of the comparison group with that of the active treatment group. Placebos aid in the masking of subjects and investigators by attempting to prevent them from knowing their true treatment status (Aschengrau & Seage, p. 184).