A cross-sectional evidence-based review of pharmaceutical promotional marketing brochures and their underlying studies: is what they tell us important and true?

 This validation study was published recently in BMC Family Practice, a BioMed Central journal:

Cardarelli R, Licciardone JC, Taylor LG. A cross-sectional evidence-based review of pharmaceutical promotional marketing brochures and their underlying studies: is what they tell us important and true? BMC Fam Pract 2006 Mar 3;7:13.

BACKGROUND: A major marketing technique used by pharmaceutical companies is direct-to-physician marketing. This form of marketing frequently employs promotional marketing brochures, based on clinical research, which may influence how a physician prescribes medicines. This study’s objective was to investigate whether or not the information in promotional brochures presented to physicians by pharmaceutical representatives is accurate, consistent, and valid with respect to the actual studies upon which the promotional brochures are based.
METHODS: Physicians in five clinics were asked to consecutively collect pharmaceutical promotional brochures and to send them all to a centralized location. The brochures for any class of medication were collected on a continuous basis until 20 distinct promotional brochures were received by a central location. Once the brochure was received, the corresponding original study was obtained. Two blinded reviewers performed an evidence-based review of the article, comparing data that was printed on the brochure to what was found in the original study.
RESULTS: Among the 20 studies, 75% of the studies were found to be valid, 80% were funded by the pharmaceutical company, 60% of the studies and the corresponding brochures presented patient-oriented outcomes, and 40% were compared to another treatment regimen. Of the 19 brochures that presented the data as graphs, 4 brochures presented a relative risk reduction while only 1 brochure presented an absolute risk reduction. 15% of the promotional marketing brochures presented data that was different from what was in the original published study.
CONCLUSION: Given the present findings, physicians should be cautious about drawing conclusions regarding a medication based on the marketing brochures provided by pharmaceutical companies.
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Adult Education: Three reviews from the Adult Education Quarterly

The May 2006 issue of Adult Education Quarterly includes reviews of three books on adult education:

Simone Conceição.  Book Review: Philosophical Foundations of Adult Education. Adult Education Quarterly 2006 56: 223-224.
Philosophical Foundations of Adult Education, by John L. Elias and Sharan B. Merriam (3rd ed.). Malabar, FL: Krieger, 2005. 286 pp., $39.50 (hardcover). DOI link to review

Extract: An essential book for anyone working in adult education is John Elias and Sharan Merriam’s third edition of Philosophical Foundations of Adult Education. The book addresses seven theoretical approaches to adult education: liberal, progressive, behaviorist, humanist, radical/critical, analytic, and postmodern. It provides a historical background and key foundations for each approach. The third edition maintains the same organization of chapters as the previous edition (i.e., review of historical roots and basic principles of each philosophy, an examination of its manifestations in adult education practice, and assessment of the philosophy’s usefulness to adult education practice). However, it provides major changes to each chapter and a new chapter on postmodern adult education due to updates in understandings in the field of adult education during the past 10 years.
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Gretchen T. Bersch.  Book Review: Adult Education and Lifelong Learning: Theory and Practice. Adult Education Quarterly 2006 56: 224-225.
Adult Education and Lifelong Learning: Theory and Practice, by Peter Jarvis (3rd ed.). London: Routledge Falmer, 2003. 382 pp., $42.95 (paperback).  DOI link to review

Extract: Peter Jarvis has long been a strong British voice through his writing and personal connections in the field. He had two earlier versions of this book, one in 1983 and a second in 1995. Now he has produced the third edition, adding some new sections, such as technology/distance education, and updating others. Each chapter of this edition has a brief overview, followed by the content of the chapter and finally a short summary. At the end of the book, there are selected further readings by topic and an extensive bibliography, just less than 20% of whichwas published since the second edition of this book in 1995. Twelve chapters are included, ranging from adult education/adult learning, teaching, theoretical perspectives, distance education, curriculum and program planning, and several final chapters that focus on developments and situations in the United Kingdom.
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Talmadge C. Guy.  Book Review: Review of Adult Learning and Literacy: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice. Adult Education Quarterly 2006 56: 227-229.
Review of Adult Learning and Literacy: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice (Volume 5), edited by J. P. Comings, B. Garner, and C. Smith. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2005. 288 pp., $69.95 (hardcover). DOI link to review

Extract: The American system of adult literacy has been around for nearly 40 years. For most of this time, it has been highly fragmented and subject to fits and starts in its development, advocacy, policy making, and organization. It is possible to argue that the field has now moved from childhood into adolescence. One indicator of this is the publication of an annual review of the field under the sponsorship of the National Center for the Study of Adult Literacy and Learning (NCSALL) with the purpose of drawing into focus the key issues, questions, and developments in research, theory, policy, and practice. In this fifth edition, the editors have selected chapters that glimpse important issues facing the field. The book is intended for researchers, policy makers, and practitioners interested or working in the fields of adult basic education (ABE), English for speakers of other languages (ESOL), and adult secondary programs (ASE). NCSALL is a collaboration of four universities (Harvard Graduate School of Education, University of Tennessee, Rutgers University, and Portland State University) andWorld Education, a nonprofit international organization devoted to improving education for the underprivileged. The fifth volume was published in 2005 but this is a bit misleading, as the year under review in this edition is actually 2002.
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