Missing clinical trials data could ‘endanger patients’

In an editorial for the British Medical Journal website bmj.com, Dr Richard Lehman from Oxford University and the journal’s clinical epidemiology editor Dr Elizabeth Loder have called for an end to the “culture of haphazard publication and incomplete data disclosure”.

The BMJ, which has released several papers looking into the problem of unpublished data, said missing data “distorts the scientific record” and means decisions are not made on the best evidence.

The pair concluded: “These changes have long been called for, and delay has already caused harm. The evidence shows that the current situation is a disservice to research participants, patients, health systems, and the whole endeavour of clinical medicine.”