ffectiveness Revealed
NNT means Number Needed to Treat. It is in that fine print sheet that comes with the drug your doctor prescribed and, if not, can be accessed on the manufacturer's web site. The doc said the stuff would treat the particular condition that the patient was complaining about. But will it help YOU? How effective is it for that particular problem? Drug companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, sometimes millions, to develop a drug to alleviate certain symptoms. I said treat, not cure. Pharmaceutical companies don't want to cure; they want to treat so they can continue to sell their drugs. A cure would put them out of business. There are many cures for cancer, but none allowed in the U.S. A very damning statement that will not be pursued here. NNT is the number of patients needed to be treated in order to prevent ONE additional bad outcome compared in a controlled clinical trial. The ideal NNT outcome of a trial is ONE where everyone improves from the drug