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I recently gave a lecture on meta-analyses as part of a Drug Literature Evaluation course.  One example I typically use to illustrate the importance of critically evaluating literature combined with the potential impact of the media is, “Is Cybermedicine Killing You” – The Story of a Cochrane Disaster.  It is an editorial published back in 2005 in response to a fatally flawed Cochrane paper that was ostensibly published as a review of, “interactive health communication applications” (IHCAs).  The review’s plain language summary described it as “computer-based programmes for people with chronic disease”.

In my mind, there are four key observations about that situation: