Personal Injury Law

Ghostwriting - Who is really behind the Medical Articles

By Jamie Sheller

Have you ever wondered if the article you read promoting a new drug was actually written by the pharmaceutical company or the doctor listed as the author. Well now, investigations have suggested that some articles are not written by the doctor listed as the author, but really by writers paid by the pharmaceutical industry. This practice is known in the industry as ghostwriting. Of course this calls into question the integrity of the information presented in these published medical articles. As you can imagine, the pharmaceutical company would only present the material in the best light possible to continue selling its latest drug. On the other hand, an impartial doctor would give a neutral report on the pros and cons of taking this drug. By manipulating this process, the pharmaceutical industry has taken advantage of the public. Now that this practice is coming to the forefront, it will be interesting to see if there is change. In the meantime, review each article with a healthy degree of skepticism knowing that the pharmaceutical company, as well as the doctors, may have a hidden agenda.

Full post as published by Philadelphia Personal Injury Lawyer on August 04, 2008 (boomark / email).