Influential Anesthesia Journals Less Likely to Publish Negative Results

The most well-known anesthesiology journals are more likely to publish positive results than negative ones, according to a study conducted by researchers at Chicago's Northwestern University and reported in Anesthesiology News.

Anesthesiologist Gildasio Deoliveira, MD, and Robert McCarthy, PharmD, looked at 1,169 studies published in 14 anesthesia journals between 2008 and 2009. They found that journals with higher impact factors — a measurement that calculates a journal's level of influence on a particular field — were more likely to publish positive studies.

Positive findings were at least 2.67 times more likely to appear in journals with higher impact factors, according to the report.

Related Articles on Anesthesia:
Isoflurane and Desflurane Affect Cognitive Function Differently
Topical Anesthetic Can Reduce Pain From Intravitreal Injection
25 Benchmarks for Anesthesiology Practices

© Copyright ASC COMMUNICATIONS 2012. Interested in LINKING to or REPRINTING this content? View our policies by clicking here.