How to Turn Ethical Neglect Into Ethical Approval

In their article “Limitations of Preclinical and Clinical Studies,” Pisapia and colleagues (2013) address deep brain stimulation (DBS) publication bias by advancing that selective reporting of “positive results skews the appearance of truth in regard to a clinical question,which, in turn, could harm patients receiving treatments based on the available evidence” (35). Although we agree with Pisapia and colleagues’ main point, we believe they do not develop enough the ethical issues associated with selective publications, especially when these publications are later reported by mass media.