Important Retraction Of Ablation Paper

[Lisa Salberg]

Posted February 10, 2003
This editorial and letter to the editor will appear in the March 6, 2003, issue of the Journal.

EDITORIAL
Notice of Retraction
G.D. Curfman, S.R. Morrissey, and J.M. Drazen
Abstract | PDF

CORRESPONDENCE
Retraction: Shamim et al. Nonsurgical Reduction of the Interventricular Septum in Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. N Engl J Med 2002;347:1326-33.
A.J.S. Coats and Others
Abstract | PDF

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Lisa

[Lisa Salberg]

n engl j med
348;10
www.nejm.org march
6, 2003
The
new england journal
of
medicine
curfman-1
editorial
Notice of Retraction
Gregory D. Curfman, M.D., Stephen Morrissey, Ph.D., and Jeffrey M. Drazen, M.D.
In a letter in the March 6, 2003, issue of the
Journal,
Coats et al.
1
request that their article, “Nonsurgical
Reduction of the Interventricular Septum in Patients
with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy,”
2
which was
published on October 24, 2002, be retracted. The
reason for the retraction stems from incomplete
manuscript review by the authors and false signatures
on submitted documents. We publish this
editorial comment not only to inform the medical
community but also to prevent similar situations
from arising in the future.
Of the eight persons named as authors of the article,
2
some claimed that they had never reviewed
the original data and most claimed that they had
not seen or approved either the original version or
one or more of the three revised versions of the
manuscript. One author claimed that he had seen
neither the original data nor any version of the
manuscript. Thus, there was an egregious disregard
of the principles of authorship, as specified by
the International Committee of Medical Journal
Editors.
3
How did this happen? During the review process,
several of the authors’ signatures were falsified
by a coauthor (who later confirmed to us that he had
done this); this falsification occurred without the
knowledge of the purported signatories. There were
falsified signatures on the letters of transmission
accompanying the original and revised versions of
the manuscript. It is never acceptable for one author
to sign on behalf of another, even with that coauthor’s
permission. In the matter of authorship, all
signatures must be genuine.
Because of the falsified signatures, we became
aware of the situation only after the article had been
published. Although we never proceed with our review
of a manuscript until we have the signature of
each of the authors, we cannot verify the authenticity
of the signatures sent to us. We believe this to be
a matter of basic trust between authors and editors.
However, to prevent the problem from happening
again, we plan to inform all authors of record by
e-mail when their manuscript is accepted.
We consider this breach of the principles of
authorship a serious infraction and grounds for retracting
the article. To their credit, when the offense
became apparent, several of the authors of the article
promptly communicated the facts to us and concurred
with the need for retraction. Still, this unfortunate
incident serves as a reminder to the medical
community that with the privilege of authorship
comes a mandate for personal and professional responsibility
that must be taken very seriously. The
key element of this responsibility is an understanding
that the purpose of publication is to alleviate the
suffering of those who are sick. What is published
must therefore be completely trustworthy.
1.
Coats AJS, Henein M, Flather M, et al. Retraction: Shamim et al.
Nonsurgical reduction of the interventricular septum in patients
with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. [Retraction of Shamim W,
Yousufuddin M, Wang D, et al. In: N Engl J Med 2002;347:1326-33.]
N Engl J Med 2003;348.
2.
Shamim W, Yousufuddin M, Wang D, et al. Nonsurgical reduction
of the interventricular septum in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
N Engl J Med 2002;347:1326-33.
3.
International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Uniform
requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals:
updated October 2001. (Accessed January 21, 2003, at http://www.
icmje.org.)
Copyright © 2003 Massachusetts Medical Society.

[Lisa Salberg]

MR1.VOL1:Nejm:NEJM:Layout:retractions:Letter
n engl j med
348;10
www.nejm.org march
6, 2003
The
new england journal
of
medicine
coats-1
correspondence
Retraction: Shamim et al. Nonsurgical Reduction of the
Interventricular Septum in Patients with Hypertrophic
Cardiomyopathy. N Engl J Med 2002;347:1326-33.
to the editor:
On October 24, 2002, an article
about septal ablation with alcohol for hypertrophic
cardiomyopathy was published in the
Journal
.
1
The
majority of those named as authors of the article
did not have an opportunity to review and verify the
data and to approve the manuscript. This unfortunate
situation came to light when the article was
published. In view of this irregularity in the submission
process, we request that that paper be retracted.
We believe that the alcohol-ablation technique described
is a useful procedure in selected patients
with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and other data
support this view.
2,3
We also want to make clear that
the Cleveland Clinic Foundation was not involved
in the study but was mentioned purely as an address
for correspondence. We hope that readers of the
Journal
will understand that this retraction is designed
to maintain the integrity of the scientific
process.
Andrew J.S. Coats, M.D.
Michael Henein, Ph.D.
Marcus Flather, F.R.C.P.
Ulrich Sigwart, M.D.
Hubert Seggewiss, M.D.
Duolao Wang, Ph.D.
Mohammed Yousufuddin, M.D.
Waqar Shamim, M.D.
1.
Shamim W, Yousufuddin M, Wang D, et al. Nonsurgical reduction
of the interventricular septum in patients with hypertrophic
cardiomyopathy. N Engl J Med 2002;347:1326-33.
2.
Faber L, Meissner A, Ziemessen P, Seggewiss H. Percutaneous
transluminal septal myocardial ablation for hypertrophic obstructive
cardiomyopathy: long term follow up of the first series of 25 patients.
Heart 2000;83:326-31.
3.
Mazur W, Nagueh SF, Lakkis NM, et al. Regression of left ventricular
hypertrophy after nonsurgical septal reduction therapy for hypertrophic
obstructive cardiomyopathy. Circulation 2001;103:1492-6.
Correspondence Copyright © 2003 Massachusetts Medical Society.

[Lisa Salberg]

The New England Journal of Medicine yesterday retracted a published study
because one of the co-authors forged signatures of the others saying they had
reviewed the data when they hadn't.

"Of the eight persons named as authors of the article, some claimed that they
had never reviewed the original data and most claimed that they had not seen or
approved either the original version or one or more of the three revised
versions of the manuscript," the journal editors said.

The article, "Nonsurgical Reduction of the Interventricular Septum in
Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy," by Waquar Shamim and seven others
from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London and
elsewhere was published in the journal Oct. 24.

The article said a nonsurgical procedure involving the use of ethanol to kill
heart muscle in patients with cardiomyopathy - a controlled heart attack - is
effective to relieve obstruction in selected patients.

In its notice of retraction, the journal said it is not able to verify the
signatures of every author, but will now e-mail all authors when a study has
been accepted. "We consider this breach of the principles of authorship a
serious infraction and grounds for retracting the article," the editors said.

The journal editors said one of the researchers had later confirmed that he
had falsified several of the signatures of his co-authors. They would not
identify the author.

"This unfortunate incident serves as a reminder to the medical community that
with the privilege of authorship comes a mandate for personal and professional
responsibility that must be taken very seriously," the editors said.

Dr. Gregory Curfman, a journal editor, said the Imperial College is
conducting an investigation. He said he didn't know whether the conclusions of
the study are valid.

LOAD-DATE: February 11, 2003

[Lisa Salberg]

The Boston Herald

February 11, 2003 Tuesday ALL EDITIONS

SECTION: NEWS; Pg. 018

LENGTH: 307 words

HEADLINE: Medical journal retracts article over authors' forged signatures

BYLINE: By MICHAEL LASALANDRA

BODY:

The New England Journal of Medicine yesterday retracted a published study
because one of the co-authors forged signatures of the others saying they had
reviewed the data when they hadn't.

"Of the eight persons named as authors of the article, some claimed that they
had never reviewed the original data and most claimed that they had not seen or
approved either the original version or one or more of the three revised
versions of the manuscript," the journal editors said.

The article, "Nonsurgical Reduction of the Interventricular Septum in
Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy," by Waquar Shamim and seven others
from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London and
elsewhere was published in the journal Oct. 24.

The article said a nonsurgical procedure involving the use of ethanol to kill
heart muscle in patients with cardiomyopathy - a controlled heart attack - is
effective to relieve obstruction in selected patients.

In its notice of retraction, the journal said it is not able to verify the
signatures of every author, but will now e-mail all authors when a study has
been accepted. "We consider this breach of the principles of authorship a
serious infraction and grounds for retracting the article," the editors said.

The journal editors said one of the researchers had later confirmed that he
had falsified several of the signatures of his co-authors. They would not
identify the author.

"This unfortunate incident serves as a reminder to the medical community that
with the privilege of authorship comes a mandate for personal and professional
responsibility that must be taken very seriously," the editors said.

Dr. Gregory Curfman, a journal editor, said the Imperial College is
conducting an investigation. He said he didn't know whether the conclusions of
the study are valid.

[Lisa Salberg]

Phoney article retracted
© Health24 2000-2003. All rights reserved
In an unusual case of ghostwriting turned on its head, one of the world's top medical journals announced last week that it was retracting an article it published last year because several listed authors said they had little or nothing to do with the research.
The New England Journal of Medicine said that documents backing up the research contained "false signatures" from doctors who insisted they hadn't signed any such papers. Although no one could fault the science behind the study, the journal's editors said they felt compelled to retract the article anyway because falsifying signatures is a "serious infraction."

"This unfortunate incident serves as a reminder to the medical community that with the privilege of authorship comes a mandate for personal and professional responsibility that must be taken very seriously," the editors wrote.

A heartfelt study
The National Heart Institute and the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London, where much of the research was done, are conducting their own investigations into the breach, according to Dr Gregory Curfman, executive editor of the New England Journal of Medicine.

The study concerned treatment of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a disease in which the heart's left ventricle enlarges, cutting off blood flow. Some patients don't respond to drugs and require surgery, but this research concluded that injecting alcohol might forestall the need for an operation in some patients.

Signatures faked
The article was published in the Oct. 24 issue, and Curfman said he started fielding unusual calls that very day. One came from Dr Hubert Seggewiss, a German cardiologist who was listed as one of the eight authors.

Seggewiss said he "literally never had seen any version of the paper," Curfman related. But "there's a signature next to your name," Curfman said he told him. "He said, 'It isn't possible. I never signed anything.'"

Seggewiss then faxed the journal his own signature, which bore no resemblance to the one that appeared on the backup documents. "We realized at that point that there was a problem," Curfman said.

Author confessed
The journal then contacted the remaining authors, several of whom said their signatures were falsified as well. Most claimed that they hadn't seen revised versions of the data, but one said he hadn't seen anything at all.

Curfman declined to name the offending author, who he said quickly confessed to falsifying the signatures. His explanation "wasn't clear to me - whether it was convenient, or whether he was trying to draw in prestigious investigators," Curfman said.

The journal is, for many doctors, a must-read publication with worldwide circulation.

"Why did he think he'd get away with it?" Curfman said. "I don't really have a clue."

Attempts to reach Seggewiss and two other listed authors who, according to Curfman, were not responsible - Dr Andrew Coats and Dr Mohammed Yousufuddin - were unsuccessful.

Article scrutinised
The article went through unusual scrutiny at the journal and was revised three times before it made its way into print, Curfman recalled. "We didn't see any fundamental flaw, as hard as we looked," he said.

The journal subscribes to rules set by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, which are the "gold standard" for medical periodicals. The rules state that authors must say what they contributed. "You can't sign for other people," Curfman said.

A rare and unpleasant experience
In some unusual cases - if a doctor were unavailable because he was game hunting in Africa, for instance - a doctor may allow someone else to sign off temporarily and he would sign it for himself later. But this case went beyond that because the signatures were done without the knowledge and permission of those named.

The episode is rare and "not pleasant," Curfman said. "The only way that we could try to protect against this is to have handwriting experts," he added. In the future, the journal plans to e-mail the named authors and ask them to verify that they signed any documents.

But what if a doctor leaves an institution? Most leave forwarding e-mail addresses, Curfman said. But, he allowed, "it's an imperfect world." – (HealthScout News)