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Biased, wrong and counterfeited evidences published during the COVID-19 pandemic, a systematic review of retracted COVID-19 papers

Author

Listed:
  • Angelo Capodici

    (Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna
    Stanford University - School of Medicine)

  • Aurelia Salussolia

    (Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna)

  • Francesco Sanmarchi

    (Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna)

  • Davide Gori

    (Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna)

  • Davide Golinelli

    (Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna)

Abstract

In 2020 COVID-19 led to an unprecedented stream of papers being submitted to journals. Scientists and physicians all around the globe were in need for information about this new disease. In this climate, many articles were accepted after extremely fast peer-reviews to provide the scientific community with the latest discoveries and knowledge. Unfortunately, this also led to articles retraction due to authors’ misconduct or errors in methodology and/or conclusions. The aim of this study is to investigate the number and characteristics of retracted papers, and to explore the main causes that led to retraction. We conducted a systematic review on retracted articles, using PubMed as data source. Our inclusion criteria were the following: English-language retracted articles that reported original data, results, opinions or hypotheses on COVID-19 and Sars-CoV-2. Twenty-seven retracted articles were identified, mainly reporting observational studies and opinion pieces. Many articles published during the first year of the pandemic have been retracted, mainly due to the authors' scientific misconduct. Duplications, plagiarism, frauds and absence of consent, were the main reasons for retractions. In modern medicine, researchers are required to publish frequently, and, especially during situations like the COVID-19 pandemic, when articles were rapidly published, gaps in peer-reviews system and in the path to scientific publication arose.

Suggested Citation

  • Angelo Capodici & Aurelia Salussolia & Francesco Sanmarchi & Davide Gori & Davide Golinelli, 2023. "Biased, wrong and counterfeited evidences published during the COVID-19 pandemic, a systematic review of retracted COVID-19 papers," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 57(5), pages 4881-4913, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:qualqt:v:57:y:2023:i:5:d:10.1007_s11135-022-01587-3
    DOI: 10.1007/s11135-022-01587-3
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Adam Palayew & Ole Norgaard & Kelly Safreed-Harmon & Tue Helms Andersen & Lauge Neimann Rasmussen & Jeffrey V. Lazarus, 2020. "Pandemic publishing poses a new COVID-19 challenge," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 4(7), pages 666-669, July.
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