Conflicts of interest in electrophysiology and devices presentations

AIMS

Industry collaboration with arrhythmia and devices research is common. However, this results in conflicts of interest (CoI) for researchers that should be disclosed. This study aimed to examine the quality of CoI disclosures in arrhythmia and devices presentations.

METHODS

Recorded presentations from the Arrhythmia & Devices section of the ESC Annual Congress 2016-2020 were assessed. The number of words, conflicts, and time displayed was documented for CoI declarations. Meta-data including sponsorship by an industry partner, presenter sex, and institution were obtained.

RESULTS

Of 1153 presentations assessed, 999 were suitable for inclusion. CoI statements were missing from 7.2% of presentations, and 58% reported ≥1 conflict. Those with conflicts spent less time-per-word on their disclosures (median 150 ms, interquartile range [IQR] 83-273 ms) compared with those without conflicts (median 250 ms, IQR 125-375 ms). One-in-eight presentations were sponsored (12.8%, n = 128). CoI statements were more likely to be missing in sponsored presentations (14.8%, n = 19) compared with non-sponsored presentations (6.1%, n = 53), P = 0.0003. Sponsored presentations contained a greater median number of CoIs (10, IQR 6-18) compared with non-sponsored sessions (1, IQR 0-5), P < 0.0001. Time-per-word spent on COI disclosures was 50% lower in sponsored sessions (125 ms, IQR 75-231 ms) compared with non-sponsored sessions (250 ms, IQR 125-375 ms), P < 0.0001.

CONCLUSION

The majority of those presenting arrhythmia and devices research have CoIs to declare. Declarations were often missing or displayed for short periods of time. Presenters in sponsored sessions, while being more conflicted, had a lower standard of declaration suggesting a higher risk of potential bias which viewers had insufficient opportunity to assess.

Does industry funding differ between men and women in electrophysiology and devices research?

Funding Acknowledgements

Type of funding sources: None.

Background

A significant gender bias has been identified in cardiology. Industry funding may be important developing electrophysiology (EP) and devices research. Such funding leads to potential conflicts of interest (COI) which must be disclosed on research presentations. There is limited evidence whether the gender bias in cardiology extends to industry funding of research.

Purpose

To assess whether COI disclosures in EP and devices presentations at the ESC Annual Congress differ between men and women.

Methods

Recorded presentations from the Arrhythmia & Devices section of ESC Annual Congresses 2016-2020 were assessed. Presentations were excluded if the original presentation contained no slides, it was a panel discussion, it was a non-scientific presentation, or part of the presentation was missing. Presentations with multiple speakers were also excluded. Chi-squared and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to assess differences between groups for dichotomous and continuous data respectively.

Results

Of 1,153 presentations assessed, 999 were suitable for inclusion. Women made up 22% (n = 221) of presenters. There was no difference in whether COI declaration slides were missing between women (5.9%, n = 13) and men (7.6%, n = 56), p = 0.38. In those with COI disclosure slides (n = 927), women declared significantly lower median number of COIs (0, IQR 0-3) compared with men (2, IQR 0-8), p &lt; 0.0001. In contrast, women spent a greater time-per-word on their COI disclosure slides (250ms, IQR 125-375ms) compared with men (200ms, IQR 118-333ms), p &lt; 0.0001.

Conclusions

Women made up a minority of presenters in EP/devices talks at the ESC annual congress. Women were less likely to have COIs which may suggest that they are less likely to receive industry funding. Despite this, women spent a greater amount of time-per-word on their COI slides. The lower number of declared COIs in women highlights another potential area of gender bias in cardiology that needs further investigation so that it can be addressed.