Merck Makes Phony Peer-Review Journal

[Hannah Bell]

'The Scientist' has reported that, yes, it's true, Merck cooked up a phony, but real sounding, peer reviewed journal and published favorably looking data for its products in them. Merck paid Elsevier to publish such a tome, which neither appears in MEDLINE or has a website, according to The Scientist.

What's wrong with this is so obvious it doesn't have to be argued for. What's sad is that I'm sure many a primary care physician was given literature from Merck that said, "As published in Australasian Journal of Bone and Joint Medicine, Fosamax outperforms all other medications...." Said doctor, or even the average researcher wouldn't know that the journal is bogus...

These kinds of endeavors are not possible without help...


http://blog.bioethics.net/2009/05/merck-makes-phony-peerreview-journal/

[annabanana]

1. So.. That's Fraud for pasing of the publication as something is wasn't, and

some variety of homicide if people died from the drugs... right?

[mike_c]

14. unlikely....

All peer-reviewed scientific journals rely on editors to farm out the reviews. All you'd have to do is subvert the editorial process, which is entirely voluntary anyway, and send all manuscripts to loyal reviewers, e.g. company scientists. Or company PR hacks. Reviewers are confidential, after all.

[tanyev]

2. Kick.

[cpompilo]

3. Phony peer reviewed journal brought to you by Big pHARMa

with emphasis on harm.

[mod mom]

4. shocking isn't it? k&r

[populistdriven]

5. I'm leaving a copy of this in dentists and doctors offices nt

[Captain Hilts]

6. They have NO shame. nt

[Supersedeas]

11. $$$ make the shame easier to live with

[jpak]

7. If true - Elsevier is now officially a 'ho and all its journals are now suspect

That is the real story for the scientific community...

[mike_c]

13. yup-- as soon as a publisher begins to play that game...

...it's journals lose legitimacy. As they should.

[pleah]

8. K&R

[rustydog]

9. Decreased regulation, no oversight// GOP heaven

Who in their right mind will take medication for everyday ailments that lists "Sudden Death" as a fucking side effect.
nosebleeds, headaches and infections/

Shit, the drug companies are only interested in developing medications that make the penis erect for 4 hours and an ointment that will grow hair on a billiard ball.

Yet how many die from Diabetes, Cancer, and yes the Flu each year?

Thanks to de regulation that took a great leap in 1997 when drug companies could begin to advertise to the general public (ask your doctor for "mycoxafailin".) turning the MD into a drug pusher.

[Vidar]

10. K&R.

[anonymous171]

12. Luddite. nt

[knitter4democracy]

15. Duh. They're those freebie crap journals doctors get all the time.

That's one nice thing about STBX being out of the house--no more piles of slick, crappy freebie med journals clogging up the recycling bin or the mailbox.

Any doctor who believes those things isn't worth the degree. Everyone knows they're crap.

[earth mom]

16. I'm not surprised. Big Pharma has been lying their asses off for years about mercury in vaccines

and how they had nothing to do with the Autism epidemic.

Nothing but a bunch of lying fuckwads! :puke:

[autorank]

17. Wow! k*r

Hannah Bell, that's just awful. What next, paid panel members who report improvements or
take other drugs surreptitiously to treat symptoms that the tested drug is supposed to treat,
but can't. I have faith that they'll reach new lows.