Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Be careful when using preprint servers for medical research reports

Neha Pidatala, MD
Physician
December 31, 2020
Share
Tweet
Share

The coronavirus pandemic posed unprecedented challenges and forced a shift towards an accelerated digital transformation. The COVID-19 public health emergency focused attention on timely dissemination and reporting of research findings, resulting in the rapid growth of preprint platforms. Preprint servers like medRxiv, bioRxiv, ChemRxiv, arXiv, and ResearchSquare received attention for sharing preliminary research during the COVID-19 pandemic. Preprint servers facilitate rapid dissemination, seek the establishment of priority, and solicit feedback and collaborations.

I am a supporter of preprint platforms and of open discussions of preliminary scholarly findings. A JAMA research letter reports that clinical journals with the highest impact factor are broadly supportive of considering research preprints for publication. The number of page views, median altmetric attention scores, number of news outlets citing were higher for preprints. These later published preprints also showed trends towards a greater engagement on social media platforms like Twitter.

But, in today’s world where science is highly politicized and a misinformation pandemic looming around, researchers and policymakers need to pay close attention to these platforms’ governance, policies, and research integrity. medRxiv and bioRxiv have witnessed the highest preprint surge amidst this pandemic. These servers recognize and acknowledge that sharing poor quality science could be detrimental and hence have stepped up their usual screening policies. Currently, medRxiv has a banner at the top of their webpages, cautioning readers that the reports have not been peer-reviewed and as such should not be relied upon to report in news media as established reports or used to guide clinical practice.

Contrary to popular belief, preprints are subjected to the vetting process. bioRxiv and medRxiv have a two-tiered vetting process. In the first tier, manuscripts are screened by editorial staff who check for completeness and plagiarism. Then manuscripts are screened by volunteer academics/specialists who screen for non-scientific content, particularly conspiracies. On medRxiv, papers are scrutinized, with a turnaround time of typically four to five days.

But despite quality controls, a thoroughly debunked study reporting a causal association between brain cancer and cellphone usage remains on the bioRxiv server, which continues to be cited. Another study comparing the similarities between human immunodeficiency virus protein (HIV-1 gp120 and Gag) and coronavirus (2019 nCoV spike), though deeply flawed, remains on the server, although it says withdrawn. The platform was also exploited for amplifying Dr. Yan’s COVID-19 conspiracy theory, backed by Steve Bannon, which was later publicly debunked in major media outlets.

A study published in Quantitative Science Studies reports that academic journals also managed to decrease the publication time by 49 percent on average during this coronavirus pandemic, which is statistically relevant, with some academic journals even showing a decrease of over 80 percent compared to the pre-pandemic era.

While the preprint platforms and the expedited publication process by major academic journals on COVID-19 are laudable from the perspective of rapid dissemination, the research community and especially journalists need to carefully consume information presented on preprint servers to curb the spread of disinformation and misinformation.

Neha Pidatala is a physician and can be reached on Twitter @DrNehaPidatala.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Creativity in medical school and beyond

December 31, 2020 Kevin 0
…
Next

Can we do better when delivering bad news in trauma?

December 31, 2020 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: COVID, Infectious Disease

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Creativity in medical school and beyond
Next Post >
Can we do better when delivering bad news in trauma?

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Neha Pidatala, MD

  • How microplastics harm your health

    Neha Pidatala, MD
  • Physicians fight from the social media frontlines

    Neha Pidatala, MD

Related Posts

  • Digital advances in the medical aid in dying movement

    Jennifer Lynn
  • How the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the need for social media training in medical education 

    Oscar Chen, Sera Choi, and Clara Seong
  • A medical student’s physician inspiration

    Uju Momah
  • Why this physician teaches first-year medical students 

    Mark Kelley, MD
  • Why a gap year will make this medical student a better physician

    Yoo Jung Kim, MD
  • Why this physician teaches health policy in medical school

    Kenneth Lin, MD

More in Physician

  • Why doctors striking may be the most ethical choice

    Patrick Hudson, MD
  • How photos shape drug stigma—and what we can do about it

    Jeffrey Hom, MD, MPH, MSHP
  • From participants to partners: Rethinking clinical trial design

    Robert Den, MD
  • First-name familiarity improves doctor-patient connection

    Ryan Nadelson, MD
  • Emphasizing empathy and equity in value-based health care delivery

    Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD
  • What it really means to be lucky: a doctor’s story of survival and resilience

    Kelly Curtin-Hallinan, DO
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why rigorous training is vital for today’s surgeons

      Philip Alford, MD | Physician
    • Meeting transgender patients where they are: a health care imperative

      Tyler B. Evans, MD, MPH | Physician
    • How AI, animals, and ecosystems reveal a new kind of intelligence

      Fateh Entabi, MD | Tech
    • A physician employment agreement term that often tricks physicians

      Dennis Hursh, Esq | Finance
    • WeightWatchers shifts to value-based care with GLP-1 strategy

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • How reforming insurance, drug prices, and prevention can cut health care costs

      Patrick M. O'Shaughnessy, DO, MBA | Policy
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How coaching transforms care for people with multiple sclerosis

      Jessica Singh, MD and Liz Kiniry | Conditions
    • Why doctors striking may be the most ethical choice

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Integrating vitamin education in mental health care

      Scarlett Saitta | Conditions
    • How photos shape drug stigma—and what we can do about it

      Jeffrey Hom, MD, MPH, MSHP | Physician
    • From participants to partners: Rethinking clinical trial design

      Robert Den, MD | Physician
    • Mumps orchitis still causes infertility years after childhood

      Oluyemisi Famuyiwa, MD | Conditions

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 2 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why rigorous training is vital for today’s surgeons

      Philip Alford, MD | Physician
    • Meeting transgender patients where they are: a health care imperative

      Tyler B. Evans, MD, MPH | Physician
    • How AI, animals, and ecosystems reveal a new kind of intelligence

      Fateh Entabi, MD | Tech
    • A physician employment agreement term that often tricks physicians

      Dennis Hursh, Esq | Finance
    • WeightWatchers shifts to value-based care with GLP-1 strategy

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • How reforming insurance, drug prices, and prevention can cut health care costs

      Patrick M. O'Shaughnessy, DO, MBA | Policy
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How coaching transforms care for people with multiple sclerosis

      Jessica Singh, MD and Liz Kiniry | Conditions
    • Why doctors striking may be the most ethical choice

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Integrating vitamin education in mental health care

      Scarlett Saitta | Conditions
    • How photos shape drug stigma—and what we can do about it

      Jeffrey Hom, MD, MPH, MSHP | Physician
    • From participants to partners: Rethinking clinical trial design

      Robert Den, MD | Physician
    • Mumps orchitis still causes infertility years after childhood

      Oluyemisi Famuyiwa, MD | Conditions

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Be careful when using preprint servers for medical research reports
2 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...