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Animal Ethics Biosafety Human Research Ethics Research Integrity

How bad research clouded our understanding of Covid-19 – Vox (Kelsey Piper | December 2021)

Posted by Dr Gary Allen in Research Integrity on January 16, 2022
Keywords: Institutional responsibilities, Merit and integrity, Publication ethics, Research Misconduct, Research results, Researcher responsibilities

The Linked Original Item was Posted On December 17, 2021

Medical worker holding Coronavirus COVID-19 NP OP swab sample test kit,nasal collection equipment,CDC submitting form,reverse transcription RT-PCR DNA molecular nucleic acid diagnostic procedure

Early studies of Covid-19 therapeutics turned out to be fabricated or suspicious. That’s a huge problem for science.

The scientific integrity site Retraction Watch has been a bulwark of sound science since its founding in 2010. Its self-proclaimed mission is to act as a “window into the scientific process” by shining a light on academic research that has been retracted.

The inclusion of dodgy/junk/fabricated work in the body of scientific knowledge about COVID-19 have three serious implications: 1, It can pollute and distort the body of scientific knowledge.  2. It can perpetuate loopy and dubious claims by giving them apparent academic credibility (see hydrochlorothiazide and ivermectin for examples). 3. It can be a distraction for patients and clinicians in terms of treatments that are efficacious and safe.  We have included links to four related items.

Retractions come from across all scientific fields, but over the past two years, many of the most consequential ones have revolved around a single topic: Covid-19. And according to Retraction Watch, as many as 200 Covid-19 papers have been retracted since the start of the pandemic for a range of reasons: elementary calculation errors, researchers refusing to provide evidence that the studies were really conducted, or conclusions that aren’t supported by the data.

The problem is especially acute when it comes to studies looking into treatments for Covid-19. Early papers claiming to find stunning results for drug regimens like ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine earned tremendous attention and influence, only to later be retracted, often because substantial evidence suggested that the studies never actually happened or at least never happened as described.

One ivermectin study included in an influential meta-analysis that found great results for the drug turned out to be based on a data file where the same 11 patients were copied and pasted repeatedly to produce a more robust sample size of a few hundred. When BuzzFeed News followed up on another ivermectin study with huge results, a hospital where the research had reportedly been conducted said it had no record of such a study happening there.

How bad research clouded our understanding of Covid-19
Early studies of Covid-19 therapeutics turned out to be fabricated or suspicious. That’s a huge problem for science.

Related Reading

(UK) Keele University accepting funds for researcher who shared vaccine misinformation – The Guardian (Patrick Greenfield | February 2021)

Academic journals, journalists perpetuate misinformation in their handling of research retractions, a new study finds – TheJournalisResource (Denise-Marie Ordway | May 2021)

Science Had a Misinformation Problem Before COVID. Scientists Want to Fix It – Vice (Sarah Wells | May 2021)

The epic battle against coronavirus misinformation and conspiracy theories – Nature (Philip Ball & Amy Maxmen | May 2020)

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