PURPOSE:This paper describes the experience of the Ethics Committee of the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, while managing the workload of clinical study applications.METHODS:An expedited review process was introduced for initial review of study protocols regarded as minimal risk interventions in March 2004.RESULTS:A total of 504 study protocols were submitted for review in 2003 and this number has increased to 743 in 2007. Two hundred sixty eight studies were classified as minimal risk in 2007 and allocated to a subgroup of the Committee for review. The time to full approval was shorter for these studies as compared to other protocols.CONCLUSIONS:Implementation of initial expedited review can improve the performance of an Ethics Committee. A framework to achieve a single opinion for multisite research of minimal risk interventions should be considered to facilitate these low risk studies.

The aim of the present study was to determine the extent to which personality and treatment experience affect patients' appraisals of 4 complementary treatments for chronic pain. Patients and Methods: A total of 232 chronic pain patients ( 164 females, 68 males, average age 56.6 years) visiting a spa clinic in Austria returned a questionnaire on patient characteristics and personality ( autonomy, depressiveness, assertiveness, self-control) as well as attitudes towards ( i.e. appealing, effective, pleasant) and experience of the treatments. Results were analysed by use of linear regression analysis and confidence intervals. Results: Although all treatments were appraised positively, the passive treatments ( thermal water tub baths, classical massage) were favoured more than the active treatments ( relaxation training or exercise therapy). Treatment appraisal was not predicted by any of the personality traits but to a large extent by treatment experience. Relaxing, not unpleasant treatments were the most highly esteemed treatments. How strenuous or tiring a treatment was only had a minor effect on its appraisal. Conclusions: Neither do dependent, passive patients prefer passive treatments, nor do conscientious patients prefer active treatments. Instead, the appraisal of treatments that induce specific somatosensory sensations is largely determined by treatment experiences, i.e. what the treatment feels like. Despite the popularity of CAM which encompasses many experientially intensive treatments, treatment experience has to date been a neglected topic of treatment research.