So, @TheLancet and @NEJM have retracted the Surgisphere studies
This is not a surprise
However, some really important questions remain
This is not a surprise
However, some really important questions remain
Firstly, the ethical quagmire
How in the world did either of these journals allow a paper to be published that loudly proclaimed that there was no ethical oversight?
How in the world did either of these journals allow a paper to be published that loudly proclaimed that there was no ethical oversight?
This is a FUNDAMENTAL issue for bioethics - researchers are not and should not be in charge of deciding whether their research is ethical
And, given that this data appears to have been fraudulent, what is the ethical responsibility of these journals to correct the record? Is a retraction enough here?
Moreover, what is the long-term editorial response? Retraction is good, but how can these high-profile journals prevent something like this from happening ever again?
