A New Surgical Procedure Is to Be Tested for Effectiveness

Multiple Choice

A new surgical procedure is to be tested for effectiveness in saving limbs. The procedure is at a fairly early stage and little is known about it. The investigators wish to conduct a study to improve their surgical technique and to compare the new procedure with the established procedure, which has a 50% success rate. The study will assign 20 patients to either the established procedure or the new procedure in a systematic way. This study should:

A) be approved, because future patients will benefit from it.
B) not be approved, because it is not an experiment.
C) be approved, because comparing experimental and control subjects will provide valid conclusions.
D) not be approved, because there is no benefit to current patients.