COURAGE trial: The NEJM strikes back

The NEJM censures a cardiologist for spilling the beans on the COURAGE trial a day early:

Publication of the remarks here and on the Wall Street Journal’s website prompted editors of the medical journal and officials of the college to lift their embargoes a day early. The study found that for many patients with stable heart disease, aggressive treatment with medicines is just as effective as stents in preventing heart attacks and death from heart disease. The college is also weighing whether to take action against Leon.

Leon told theheart.org that he doesn’t believe he violated “the spirit or the substance” of the embargo and that he was “victimized” by an “overly enthusiastic reporter” who misinterpreted remarks intended to be opinions as if they were study results.