Conflict of interest: Nuances between principles and the aim

A conflict of interest exists when a health care provider's primary interest is at risk of being biased by a secondary interest that would cause harm. This concerns the different fields of professional practice. Based on a supplement of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) about conflicts of interest inviting to analyze the situation under the "Do No Harm" ethical principle, diverse scenarios are described, showing the intricacy and controversy of this topic. Elimination of conflict is not always possible, and there is consensus that science-based interactions among private organizations, health care providers and health institutions can be beneficial to patients. However, it is clear that such interaction requires transparent regulations to both manage conflict of interest and minimize bias.