Update to readers and authors on ethical and scientific misconduct: retraction of the “Boldt articles”

Excerpt

In this issue of the Journal, most regrettably, we publish retraction notices related to five articles authored by Dr. Joachim Boldt et al. which were published during the years 2000-2003. These retraction notices refer to five of 88 articles which appear on the Editors’ Joint Statement recently posted on the websites of 18 journals, including the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia.1 This unprecedented number of simultaneous article retractions reflects more than a decade of published research examining colloid intravenous solutions and the clinical pharmacology of several anesthetic techniques and drugs used in the perioperative setting. As explained in the Editors’ Joint Statement, “the retraction of the articles in the Table for lack of Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval means that the research was unethical, and IRB approval for the research was misrepresented in the published article. It does not mean that the research results per se are fraudulent. Klinikum Ludwigshafen has commissioned an investigating committee to systematically assess the veracity of the findings presented in Dr. Boldt’s articles against patient and laboratory records. We will communicate to our readers any finding of data fabrication, falsification, or misrepresentation identified by the investigating committee at Klinikum Ludwigshafen.”1 …