Table 2.
Characteristics of publications included in this systematic review
| Features of publication | n (%) of publications |
|---|---|
| Content typea | |
| Philosophy discussionb | 62 (83) |
| Policy critiquec | 26 (35) |
| Informal philosophical reviewd | 18 (24) |
| Policy reviewe | 18 (24) |
| Opinion piecef | 4 (5) |
| Case study of PTAg | 2 (3) |
| Commentaryh | 2 (3) |
| Empirical studyi | 2 (3) |
| Discussion of PTA legal casej | 1 (1) |
| Publication type | |
| Article | 55 (73) |
| Sections with distinct author groups in edited books | 9 (12)k |
| Report | 5 (7) |
| Journal-published letters | 3 (4) |
| Journal-published news article | 1 (1) |
| Monograph | 1 (1) |
| PhD thesis | 1 (1) |
| PTA discussed in relation to which trials? | |
| All | 57 (76) |
| HIV/AIDSl | 18 (24) |
| Mental health | 1 (1) |
| Genetics | 1 (1) |
| Published in 2004 (the most prolific year) | 13 (17) |
| Publications whose main topic was not PTA | 47 (63) |
| Publications concerning only research conducted by resource-rich in resource-poor countries | 58 (77) |
| English-language publicationsm | 75 (100) |
| Characteristics of 55 articles included | |
| Field of journal | |
| Medicine | 18 (33) |
| Bioethics | 17 (31) |
| Law | 12 (22) |
| Public health | 4 (7) |
| Science | 2 (4) |
| Articles published online at www.scidev.net | 2 (4) |
aPublications were assigned more than one content type where appropriate.
bDiscussion of whether there are PTA obligations.
cAssessment of PTA regulations, guidelines and/or policies.
dPublication that mentioned >12 narrow types of reasons that met the inclusion conditions.
eReview of regulations, guidelines and/or policies regarding PTA.
fExpression of mere opinion about whether there are PTA obligations.
gDescription of trial in which PTA was an issue.
hCommentary on another publication included in this review.
iPublication reporting empirical study, not necessarily of PTA.
jDiscussion of legal case in which PTA was an issue.
kThe 9 sections occurred in a total of three edited books.
lThe HIV/AIDS publications concerned AZT, ART or vaccine research.
mSee ‘Limitations’ section.