With a significant number of clinical trials getting negative attention these days, a leading medical journal has decided that too much of the data found in them are hidden from the public.

According to a recent report from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel newspaper, there are a series of recent studies that have been published in the British Medical Journal that complain about how reporting the results from clinical drug trials in the U.S. is slow going at best. The authors of the study are saying that the American process “harms patients, increases the cost of health care and creates unnecessary public health risks by intentionally hiding data which highlights the dangers of a particular drug.”

BMJ researchers participating in these studies are under the impression that doctors who participate in clinical trials and don’t meet the proper legal guidelines should be subjected to suffering from penalties or some sort of disciplinary action should be taken against them. To back up this claim, researchers at University of Nottingham have found that “just 22 percent of the results of mandated clinical trials on new drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration had been submitted to the National Institutes of Health [even though] newly-approved drugs typically carry a mandate that its manufacturer complete a post-market review of the drug and submit it to regulators.”

As a means of backing up this information, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, along with MedPageToday.com, have given examples of many recent examples of data being hidden from the public that could have saved some patients’ lives had the adverse side effects of the drugs been reported sooner. One of the drugs mentioned was the heart drug Multaq, which was the subject of a halted PALLAS trial. The PALLAS and ATHENA studies both found that Multaq worsened patients’ heart conditions and caused liver failure. The PALLAS study was halted after patients started dying while taking the drug.

If you or a loved one has developed liver failure or a worsening heart condition after taking Multaq, contact the attorneys at Greg Jones today for a free consultation. I am experienced at fighting Multaq lawsuits and may be able to help you recover money for your injuries.