Search Results for: randomized

Paper claiming vaping tops nicotine gum for smoking cessation retracted from JAMA journal

A JAMA journal has retracted a paper on vaping it published two months ago after the researchers alerted the editors to “significant coding errors” and other problems with the work.  The article, “Efficacy of Electronic Cigarettes vs Varenicline and Nicotine Chewing Gum as an Aid to Stop Smoking: A Randomized Clinical Trial,” was written by … Continue reading Paper claiming vaping tops nicotine gum for smoking cessation retracted from JAMA journal

Following mass resignation, obstetrics journals place editor’s notes on studies

Two BMC journals – part of the Springer Nature stable – have flagged studies a month after 10 editors at one of the journals resigned to protest the publications’ failure to respond quickly to allegations of data fabrication. As we reported earlier this month, obstetrician-gynecologist and sleuth Ben Mol sent allegations about papers published in … Continue reading Following mass resignation, obstetrics journals place editor’s notes on studies

Iran COVID-vaccine paper with ‘serious flaws’ retracted

Following criticism from scientists around the world, a virology journal has retracted a paper describing the first test in humans of an Iran-made vaccine against COVID-19. Iran licensed the home-grown Noora vaccine for emergency use in 2022 and has reportedly administered millions of doses to its citizens. The country’s health authorities say the shot is … Continue reading Iran COVID-vaccine paper with ‘serious flaws’ retracted

Editorial board members resign from obstetrics journal to protest handling of allegations

A group of 10 members of the editorial board of BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth have resigned to protest the journal’s failure to respond to allegations of data fabrication. Last week, in an email obtained by Retraction Watch, the editors wrote to Tovah Aronin, the managing editor of the journal, regarding “concerns about the publication of … Continue reading Editorial board members resign from obstetrics journal to protest handling of allegations

A cardiac surgeon’s tortuous efforts – including three lawsuits – to get the scientific record corrected

For the past 14 years, a cardiac surgeon in Italy has been trying to blow the whistle on a study written by his former colleagues that has been the subject of several investigations – with two of them finding problems with the data. And despite defeating three defamation lawsuits, two  which were brought by authors … Continue reading A cardiac surgeon’s tortuous efforts – including three lawsuits – to get the scientific record corrected

Weekend reads: NEJM’s racist past; ‘journal editors are like gods’; Harvard accused of pushing out misinformation researcher for criticizing Meta

Would you consider a donation to support Weekend Reads, and our daily work? The week at Retraction Watch featured: Our list of retracted or withdrawn COVID-19 papers is up to over 375. There are more than 45,000 retractions in The Retraction Watch Database — which is now part of Crossref. The Retraction Watch Hijacked Journal Checker now contains well over 200 titles. And … Continue reading Weekend reads: NEJM’s racist past; ‘journal editors are like gods’; Harvard accused of pushing out misinformation researcher for criticizing Meta

Research integrity during the COVID-19 pandemic: A book excerpt

We are pleased to present an excerpt from Thinking About Science: Good Science, Bad Science, and How to Make It Better by Ferric C. Fang and Arturo Casadevall, published by ASM Press/Wiley, October 2023. Amidst the COVID-19 calamity, one can argue that science is one of the few aspects of the human response that has … Continue reading Research integrity during the COVID-19 pandemic: A book excerpt

Publisher looking into COVID vaccine paper with ‘serious flaws’

A controversial paper on the safety and immunogenicity of an Iran-made COVID-19 vaccine is being investigated by the U.S.-based publisher Wiley, Retraction Watch has learned. Iran reportedly has already administered 3 million doses of the vaccine, dubbed Noora, which the country licensed for emergency use last year. The paper describes the vaccine’s first test in … Continue reading Publisher looking into COVID vaccine paper with ‘serious flaws’

‘Prompt and decisive’: Editor says obesity study will be retracted after critique

In February, David Allison came across a study with a familiar problem.  The authors of the study purported to show an educational program helped women lose weight, but they had not directly compared the treatment and control groups. Instead, they’d used a statistically invalid method to compare changes within the groups.  Allison, the dean at … Continue reading ‘Prompt and decisive’: Editor says obesity study will be retracted after critique

‘Unethical and misleading’: Researcher finds his name on editorial boards of journals he’s never heard of

On July 21, Derek Woollins received an email asking that an article be withdrawn from a journal he supposedly helped edit.  But although Woollins was listed on the journal’s website as a member of its editorial board, he had never even heard of the publication.  Woollins, a professor of synthetic chemistry at the University of … Continue reading ‘Unethical and misleading’: Researcher finds his name on editorial boards of journals he’s never heard of