Publication fraud: implications to the individual and to the specialty

To provide a brief review and update on the subject of scientific misconduct relevant to the specialty of anesthesia. The overall goal is to raise awareness amongst readers of the scientific literature that although publication fraud is relatively infrequent, the reasons for fraud are complex and the consequences to the individual and for the specialty are substantial.

Scientific misconduct and publication fraud can easily go undetected. However, plagiarism is being detected with increasing frequency as a result of newer detection software. There are recent examples of scientific misconduct involving extensive data fabrication in the anesthesiology literature that have far-reaching, and as-yet-to-be determined implications for the scientific record. The reasons for publication fraud and methods to detect scientific misconduct are reviewed. The implications for related studies in the field, systematic reviews and practice guidelines are considered.

When suspected, alleged misconduct must be thoroughly investigated. When proven, scientific misconduct must be addressed by the relevant institutions and the scientific record must be corrected. Many stakeholders are involved in this complex and most unfortunate process.