March 16, 2010

Cardiologist claims cardiology groups too cozy with industry

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Cleveland Clinic cardiologist Steve Nissen knows how to choose his moments, and so, chose the American College of Cardiology convention in Atlanta to criticize that group for allowing ties with industry to influence its policies and education programs for doctors.

The AP reports:

“The flap caused a stir at the conference and riled doctors and industry members alike. Dr. Robert Harrington, head of heart research at Duke University, who also spoke at the session, said scientists and professional societies need to do more to have “firewalls” to protect their work from corporate influence. However, most research in the United States is paid for by industry, and fair and ethical partnerships are needed to develop treatments, he said. “While it’s easy to say all of this should be funded by the NIH, that’s not the reality,” Harrington said.”

MedPageToday.com posted Twitter entries during the talk. Two comments attributed to Nissen:

designed talk to try to offend everybody in the room

patients don’t trust physicians anymore believe we are bought and paid for

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