On the other hand, in trials where a placebo is a controversial control, feedback of results might help to document the harms of the control group. A second impact is that clinical trial data could not be suppressed. Investigators have failed to publish results for a number of reasons ranging from laziness to proprietary concerns that the results will not serve the interests of corporate shareholders. This is of course scientific misconduct. It is misconduct because no single trial is a definitive proof of a hypothesis.
Statistical validity is established in part by the repetition of a study.
Hiding data violates this. If feeding back research results was standard practice, such scientific misconduct would cease. The risks of research are justified by the potential benefits, if any, to the subjects and the importance of the knowledge to be gained. One way to respect the decision to take on these risks is to promise that the subjects will learn the knowledge they contributed to. In this way, we can achieve true respect for autonomy.