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Dummy:
Dummy:
"A counterfeit object;" a form of treatment - as in an experimental investigation of drug effects - which is intended to have no effects, to be biologically inert. The dummy treatment should mimic in every way (dosage form, route of administration, etc.) the purportedly active ingredient upon which the effectiveness of the active treatment is expected to depend. In contrast to a dummy, a placebo is expected to have an effect through the agency of "suggestion" or other psychological mechanisms, even though the effects of placebos may be psychological or physical. Dummies may, of course, have the effects of placebos, but it is useful to be aware of the difference expected to exist between the two.
According to Gaddum, dummies have two functions: 1) to distinguish between drug effects in a subject and other effects, such as those of suggestion: obviously, an experiment might properly incorporate both a dummy and a placebo. 2) to obtain an unbiased assessment of the result of a pharmacologic experiment. (See Gaddum, J.H., Proc. Roy. Soc. Med. 47: 195, 1954).
Cf. Placebo, Negative Control Drug, Cross-Over Experiment
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