Pfizer thinks so. They've given $55,000 to a group of doctors to help them publish their thoughts in a supplement to the American Journal of Cardiology. In the arcane world of medical journalism, articles that appear in supplements to journals are not subject to the 'rigorous' standards for publishing in the journal itself.
The doctors want every man between the ages of 45 and 75 and every woman between 55 and 75 to take both a CT scan and ultrasound to detect their susceptibility to heart trouble. These tests would cost between $200 and $750. So, there is a good deal of money to be made if the doctors' recommendations are followed. The problem is that even the doctors acknowledge that the tests may not actually produce anywhere near the results they claim. But, hey, the Journal made some money, the doctors can claim they a published scientists, the drug companies got some PR. Isn't that what today's medicine is becoming for some people?
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