Joseph A. Hill
Medical misinformation: vet the message!
mrs jones based risk factors heart attack recommend start statin thank doctor ive read many scary things drugs internet plus worry profession make recommendations reasons personal financial gain also found online undoubtedly majority cardiologists numerous conversations like urging patient take statin powerful cholesterollowering drugs robust mortality benefit part reason oftentimes brainer recommendations rejected derives widely disseminated incorrect information vastly overstates risks drugs course like anything life statin use entirely riskfree application always entail thoughtful analysis risks versus benefits patients recognize benefits statin use invisible didnt heart attack stroke past year whereas small typically reversible risks eg muscle pain readily apparent many patients would benefit statin use take cardiovascular disease 1 killer men women around world robust scientific advances published pages journals fostered significant improvements benefit individuals society yet cardiovascular disease continues transform emerging new forms heart failure struggle shifted new battlefields successes derive armamentarium powerful tools medicines devices awareness lifestylerelated hazards high blood pressure high cholesterol smoking sadly however take full advantage tools disposal one significant cause suboptimal utilization prodigious tool chest medical misinformation hyped internet television chat rooms social media many instances celebrities activists politicians convey false information uncommonly authors purely venal motives participate point numerous examples including entirely unfounded concerns regarding vaccinations notion mmr measles mumps rubella vaccination causes autism based single flawed study long since refuted publication retracted seventeen much larger properly controlled studies proven otherwise nevertheless internet shouts unfounded warnings celebrities actors activists politicians specific knowledge training use fame promote message causes serious harm individuals neither physicians scientists often specific agenda outsized influence lives dispute scientific evidence without ever studied it1 recognizing impossible prove never scientists appropriately couch statements statistical terms may come across public waffling nuanced voices scientists often resonate public much strident alarms sounded people fame speaking absolute terms scientists appropriately skeptical individual scientist study wrong common apt yet science ultimately selfcorrects scientist gets wrong happens people sometimes vilify entire selfcorrecting scientific enterprise trust aeronautical science board airplane trust science buried within cell phones trust mechanical engineering science cross bridge yet many uniquely skeptical biological science sadly cannot exclude professions science medicine act based motives driven financial considerations incomplete declarations potential conflict interest persist2 recent examples dramatic price hikes important medications reinforced notion indeed many physicians conversations patients believe recommendations stem least part prospect personal financial gain editorsinchief major cardiovascular scientific journals around globe sound alarm human lives stake pointing 2 examples elaborated people decline use statin recommended doctor parents withhold vaccines children put lives harms way media must better job unacceptable position false equivalents discussions often done foster debate controversy easy find rogue voice inappropriate suggest voice carries weight emerging mainstream science easily point examples outside medical domain well climate change evolution nutraceuticals gmo foods false equivalents frequently posited furthermore recent evidence suggests misinformation travels faster social networks truth3 must work enhance science literacy world one place start better job teaching scientific method schools lay public aware science accomplished fits starts end gets right purveyors social media must responsible content disseminate longer acceptable hide behind cloak platform editors charged evaluating validity science presented us possible publication work hard fulfill heady responsibility recognizing lives stake reach thoughtleading experts evaluate veracity report receive challenge social media leverage ready availability scienceconversant expertise disseminating content may reliable without exaggeration significant harm society individuals derives wanton spread medical misinformation high time stop lay feet purveyors internet social media content responsibility fix joseph hill md phd editorinchief circulation behalf following heart group signatories stefan agewall md phd editorinchief european heart journal cardiovascular pharmacotherapy stefanagewallmedisinuiono adrian baranchuk md editorinchief journal electrocardiology baranchakghkarinet george w booz phd editorinchief journal cardiovascular pharmacology gboozumcedu jeffrey borer md editorinchief cardiology jsborer1gmailcom paolo g camici md editorinchief international journal cardiology camicipaolohsrit pengsheng chen md editorinchief heartrhythm chenppiuedu anna f dominiczak dbe md editorinchief hypertension annadominiczakglasgowacuk etin erol md phd editorinchief anatolian journal cardiology ctnerolyahoocom cindy l grines md editorinchief journal interventional cardiology cgrinesyahoocom cgrinesbeaumontedu robert gropler md editorinchief circulation cardiovascular imaging groplerrmirwustledu tomasz j guzik md phd editorinchief cardiovascular research tomaszguzikglasgowacuk markus k heinemann md phd editorinchief thoracic cardiovascular surgeon mheinemaunimainzde ami e iskandrian md editorinchief journal nuclear cardiology aiskanduabedu bradley p knight md editorinchief pace eplab digest bradleyknightnmorg barry london md phd editorinchief journal american heart association barrylondonuiowaedu thomas f lscher md editorinchief european heart journal cardiotomluescherch thomasluescherzhhch marco metra md editorinchief european journal heart failure marcometraunibsit kiran musunuru md phd mph editorinchief circulation genomic precision medicine kiranmusunurugmailcom brahmajee k nallamothu md mph editorinchief circulation cardiovascular quality outcomes bnallamoumichedu andrea natale md sanjeev saksena md editor inchief journal interventional cardiac electrophysiology cmenjaolcom drnatalegmailcom michael h picard md editorinchief journal american society echocardiography mhpicardmghharvardedu sunil v rao md editorinchief circulation cardiovascular interventions sunilraodukeedu willem j remme md phd robert rosenson md editorsinchief cardiovascular drugs therapy wjremmegmailcom robertrosensonmssmedu nancy k sweitzer md phd editorinchief circulation heart failure nancysweitzershcarizonaedu adam timmis md editorinchief european heart journal quality care clinical outcomes adamtimmismaccom christiaan vrints md phd editor chief european heart journal acute cardiovascular care pg camici consultant servier rs rosenson reports research grants institutions akcea amgen astra zeneca medicines company regeneron rs rosenson reports speaking engagements amgen kowa research consulting akcea regeneron royalties uptodate inc stock holdings medimergent authors report conficts interest