A discredited study that promoted the use of an antimalarial drug as a treatment for COVID-19 has been formally withdrawn from publication, amid allegations of scientific misconduct and manipulation.
The study, published in 2020, was introduced at a time when little else was available to treat the novel coronavirus. It offered a glimmer of hope when hospitals were filling up with patients and deaths were mounting. However, fellow scientists quickly raised doubts about the study’s size, methodology, and ethics.
Subsequent studies failed to confirm its findings, and the journal that initially published the paper has since retracted it. The French Society of Pharmacology and Therapeutics called the paper “a clear example of scientific misconduct,” which led to the abusive prescription of hydroxychloroquine to millions of patients and potentially thousands of avoidable deaths.
The treatment was widely promoted by then-President Donald Trump, who took the drug himself despite warnings from the US Food and Drug Administration. Hydroxychloroquine has been linked to serious side effects, including cardiac arrest and liver failure. The FDA issued a warning for its use to treat COVID-19 infections.
The retraction of the study is seen as an example of how politicizing science can lead to mistakes. Ivan Oransky, co-founder of Retraction Watch, said that “you don’t get closer to the truth by politicizing science.” He added that public health officials and researchers need to acknowledge when they get things wrong to avoid a worse cycle.
The study’s senior researcher, Didier Raoult, has faced controversy over his previous research, which was discredited. The retraction of this paper is a reminder that scientific integrity is essential in times of crisis.
Source: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2024/12/17/hydroxychloroquine-study-covid-19-retracted-trump/77051671007