Comments on: A Letter by Dr. Jon Poling regarding a “highly relevant potential source of bias”

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 01:08:45 +0000

Pathophilia has a good write-up of the letters.

By: Club 166

Club 166 — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:43:55 +0000

In the general media, all publicity may be good publicity, but professional journals don’t usually view it that way.

Mainstream peer reviewed medical journals don’t take kindly to being hoodwinked. I don’t think Polling will be publishing there again for a long time.

Joe

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 05:17:41 +0000

Perhaps it might be said, a dive was taken for short-end results—–but the long-term outcome may be a different matter.

By: Regan

Regan — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 05:10:23 +0000

“The first principle is that you must not fool yourself — and you are the easiest person to fool. So you have to be very careful about that. After you’ve not fooled yourself, it’s easy not to fool other scientists. You just have to be honest in a conventional way after that.”

Also Richard Feynman

By: Phil Schwarz

Phil Schwarz — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 05:04:20 +0000

“Reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled.” — Richard Feynman

By: Emily

Emily — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 23:44:48 +0000

No question he should have revealed that, um, association of interest. And no question, he knew that. Who, in his position, wouldn’t? And thus, we come to motive. What would be the real motive of not revealing that? It can’t be to protect his daughter, whom he paraded around on national television shows, by name, unconcealed. So what was the motive? Gosh, I just can’t imagine.

By: Regan

Regan — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 21:14:58 +0000

Kev also points out a significant piece of language in Dr. Poling's Journal of Child Neurology letter over at LeftBrainRightBrain. Hint: it has to do with "encephalopathy", not "autism".

By: Kristina Chew, PhD

Kristina Chew, PhD — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 20:33:17 +0000

A very deep muddying of the waters indeed.

By: Regan

Regan — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 20:02:46 +0000

When the Editor-in-Chief of a journal writes an article titled "The Appalling Poling Saga" about the undisclosed conflict of interest, it's not small potatoes. Defense of non-disclosure or irrelevance to publication is not exactly helped by going on the media circuit instead of demanding that David Kirby retract the initial "leak". While this specific article was not used in the VCIP case, it, and the standing of the journal were used in the court of public opinion to bolster what I believe was a calculated media campaign. Brumback, R.A. (2008). The appalling Poling saga. Journal of Child Neurology, 23, 1090-1091. "media linkage of the published article to the legal outcome implies scientific support from JCN for this legal opinion. Of course it is possible to view this media exposure along the lines of the quip: “There is no such thing as bad publicity—just publicity.” However, in order for journals to maintain credibility with the scientific community and the general public, it is essential that any conflicts of interest be clearly identified...no written statement can substitute for honesty, good faith, and integrity on the part of authors." Frye, R.E., Zimmerman, A.W., & Shoffner, J.M. (2008). Conflict of interest statement concerning "Developmental Regression and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in a Child With Autism". Journal of Child Neurology, 23, 1089-1090 "...In retrospect, a full disclosure of the relationship of the patient to the lead author and the submission of this case to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System and the U.S. Vaccine Injury Compensation Program should have been made to the journal prior to publication..." Poling, J.S. (2008). Correspondence on "Developmental Regression and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in a Child With Autism". Journal of Child Neurology, 23,1089. "A third party subsequently leaked, without our knowledge or permission, my daughter’s identity and the government’s concession report to the media. In hindsight, I agree that I should have declared my daughter’s identity in a separate letter to JCN. I apologize for that omission." As Kathleen Seidel noted in her blog post, ...With Developmental Regression and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in a Child with Autism, Dr. Jon Poling takes his place with Dr. Andrew Wakefield, Dr. Mark Geier and Laura Hewitson, Ph.D. in the ranks of researchers who have concealed relevant legal and financial interests in studies purporting to confirm a causal relationship between vaccines and autism."