So much for multimodal pain therapy. A leading proponent, anesthesiologist Scott Reuben, is watching his abruptly damaged reputation. The fraud continued for twelve years, from 1996-2008. More than twenty of Reuben's thirty peer-reviewed articles have been retracted or are being reassessed. It's a black day for peer review. The honor system. And anesthesiology. What industry critics will…more...

We’ve been sad lately. Once again, without explanation, our invitation to a presidential inauguration has been lost in the U.S. mail. We know that when the tears stop, as they eventually must, the emotional corner will have been turned. It’s not that Barack Obama is merely charisma—or some sort of electoral fluke. No. He’s a genuine visionary.…more...

As many readers know, the Supreme Court is considering the case of a Vermont musician, Diana Levine, who lost an arm when a physician assistant didn’t fully consider the label on a Wyeth anti-nausea drug. The legal debate is stark: can the FDA’s approval take precedence, or “preempt,” state courts hearing liability cases? Earlier this year, we…more...

Sydney “Syd” Wolfe, director of Public Citizen’s health research group, is scratching his head. Tequin (gatifloxacin)—an antibiotic that Public Citizen had campaigned against—was pulled from the market by its manufacturer, Bristol-Meyers Squibb (BMS). But BMS said that was because of lagging sales. That was two years ago. In September of this year, the FDA formally announced that…more...