BMJ  2003;327 (8 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7423.0-g

Editor's choice

Claims and counter claims

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Are journal editors more worried about libel than ensuring that research is valid? Peter Wilmshurst, a consultant cardiologist famous for exposing research misconduct, believes so (p 1113). He tells Annabel Ferriman: "I have submitted many scientific articles for publication, and many had implications for survival of patients, but no journal has ever asked me to prove that I got the results claimed. This might suggest that medical journals are more concerned with the reputations of academics and their institutions than the lives of patients." We like to think that we do care more about patients than reputations, but we don't routinely ask authors to prove the results they claimed. Perhaps we should—though it would probably be unworkable.

As usual, this week's journal is full of claims and counter claims. Venous thromboembolism after air travel was first recorded in 1954, yet the risk is unclear. Australian researchers investigated this . . . [Full text of this article]

(kabbasi@bmj.com)

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