[BostonCard]

The Lancet has issued an "Expression of Concern" about the study.

https://www.thelancet.com/lancet/article...3620312903

Important  scientific  questions  have  been  raised  about  data  reported  in  the  paper  by  Mandeep  Mehra  et  al—Hydroxychloroquine  or  chloroquine  with  or  without  a  macrolide  for  treatment  of  COVID-19:  a  multinational  registry  analysis1—published  in  The  Lancet  on  May  22,  2020. Although an independent audit of the provenance and  validity  of  the  data  has  been  commissioned  by  the  authors  not  affiliated  with  Surgisphere  and  is  ongoing,  with  results  expected  very  shortly,  we  are  issuing  an Expression  of  Concern  to  alert  readers  to  the  fact  that  serious  scientific  questions  have  been  brought  to  our  attention. We will update this notice as soon as we have further information.

The Lancet Editors

A good summary of the issues:

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/06/...unraveling

But just as quickly, the Lancet results have begun to unravel—and Surgisphere, which provided patient data for two other high-profile COVID-19 papers, has come under withering online scrutiny from researchers and amateur sleuths. They have pointed out many red flags in the Lancet paper, including the astonishing number of patients involved and details about their demographics and prescribed dosing that seem implausible. “It began to stretch and stretch and stretch credulity,” says Nicholas White, a malaria researcher at Mahidol University in Bangkok.

I default to my previous position.  This can only be answered for sure with a randomized, controlled study, of which there are several ongoing, and while the observational studies raise concerns about the safety of hydroxychloroquine, they have methodological limitations (aside from the questions that are being raised about the study in the Lancet) that can only be overcome with a randomized trial.

Still, this is not, as they say, "a good look".

BC

[BostonCard]

The Lancet has issued an "Expression of Concern" about the study.

https://www.thelancet.com/lancet/article...3620312903

Important  scientific  questions  have  been  raised  about  data  reported  in  the  paper  by  Mandeep  Mehra  et  al—Hydroxychloroquine  or  chloroquine  with  or  without  a  macrolide  for  treatment  of  COVID-19:  a  multinational  registry  analysis1—published  in  The  Lancet  on  May  22,  2020. Although an independent audit of the provenance and  validity  of  the  data  has  been  commissioned  by  the  authors  not  affiliated  with  Surgisphere  and  is  ongoing,  with  results  expected  very  shortly,  we  are  issuing  an Expression  of  Concern  to  alert  readers  to  the  fact  that  serious  scientific  questions  have  been  brought  to  our  attention. We will update this notice as soon as we have further information.

The Lancet Editors

A good summary of the issues:

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/06/...unraveling

But just as quickly, the Lancet results have begun to unravel—and Surgisphere, which provided patient data for two other high-profile COVID-19 papers, has come under withering online scrutiny from researchers and amateur sleuths. They have pointed out many red flags in the Lancet paper, including the astonishing number of patients involved and details about their demographics and prescribed dosing that seem implausible. “It began to stretch and stretch and stretch credulity,” says Nicholas White, a malaria researcher at Mahidol University in Bangkok.

I default to my previous position.  This can only be answered for sure with a randomized, controlled study, of which there are several ongoing, and while the observational studies raise concerns about the safety of hydroxychloroquine, they have methodological limitations (aside from the questions that are being raised about the study in the Lancet) that can only be overcome with a randomized trial.

Still, this is not, as they say, "a good look".

BC