Conflicts of Interest Among Authors of Published Cannabidiol Articles, 2014–2019
Authors: Emma C. Deary, Joseph S. Ross, Kate Nyhan, Joshua D. Wallach
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2020)

Letters2 June 2020Conflicts of Interest Among Authors of Published Cannabidiol Articles, 2014–2019Emma C. Deary, Joseph S. Ross, MD, MHS, Kate Nyhan, MLS, and Joshua D. Wallach, MS, PhDEmma C. DearyWellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts (E.C.D.), Joseph S. Ross, MD, MHSYale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut (J.S.R.), Kate Nyhan, MLSHarvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library, New Haven, Connecticut (K.N.), and Joshua D. Wallach, MS, PhDYale School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut (J.D.W.)Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M19-3650 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Background: Cannabidiol (CBD), a chemical compound in cannabis, has increased exponentially in use and popularity because of its perceived therapeutic value (1). Only 1 CBD-derived drug has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA); its approved use is for rare forms of epilepsy (1). However, companies have been marketing and selling CBD products that claim to prevent, cure, or treat various indications, which have raised concerns about the potential for misleading and false claims (1). Given the growing number of companies invested in CBD's commercial success, along with evidence demonstrating associations between authors' conflicts of interest (COIs) ...References1. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA regulation of cannabis and cannabis-derived products, including cannabidiol (CBD). Accessed at www.fda.gov/news-events/public-health-focus/fda-regulation-cannabis-and-cannabis-derived-products-including-cannabidiol-cbd on 11 October 2019. Google Scholar2. Lundh A, Lexchin J, Mintzes B, et al. Industry sponsorship and research outcome. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017;2:MR000033. [PMID: 28207928] doi:10.1002/14651858.MR000033.pub3 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Downing NS, Cheng T, Krumholz HM, et al. Descriptions and interpretations of the ACCORD-Lipid trial in the news and biomedical literature: a cross-sectional analysis. JAMA Intern Med. 2014;174:1176-82. [PMID: 24796406] doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.1371 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Friedman LS, Richter ED. Relationship between conflicts of interest and research results. J Gen Intern Med. 2004;19:51-6. [PMID: 14748860] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Lesser LI, Ebbeling CB, Goozner M, et al. Relationship between funding source and conclusion among nutrition-related scientific articles. PLoS Med. 2007;4:e5. [PMID: 17214504] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts (E.C.D.)Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut (J.S.R.)Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library, New Haven, Connecticut (K.N.)Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut (J.D.W.)Disclaimer: Ms. Deary and Dr. Wallach had full access to all of the data in the study and take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis. Dr. Wallach was responsible for the conception and design of this work. Ms. Nyhan consulted on search terminology and designed and ran the MEDLINE All searches. All authors participated in the analysis and interpretation of the data and critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. Ms. Deary and Dr. Wallach conducted the statistical analysis. Ms. Deary and Drs. Ross and Wallach drafted the manuscript. Dr. Wallach provided supervision. Dr. Wallach affirms that he has listed everyone who contributed significantly to the work.Financial Support: Ms. Deary received support through the Summer Research Experience in Environmental Health at Yale University (1R25ES029052-01A1).Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M19-3650.Reproducible Research Statement: Study protocol, statistical code, and data set: Available from Dr. Wallach (e-mail, joshua.[email protected]edu).This article was published at Annals.org on 17 March 2020. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byConversion of Cannabidiol (CBD) into Psychotropic Cannabinoids Including Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC): A Controversy in the Scientific Literature 2 June 2020Volume 172, Issue 11Page: 769-771KeywordsCannabisConflicts of interestDisclosureDrugsEpilepsyFood and Drug AdministrationMarijuanaPsychiatry and mental healthResearch laboratoriesStatistical data ePublished: 17 March 2020 Issue Published: 2 June 2020 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2020 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...