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Mary White Stewart, PhD; Marta Elliott, PhD
University of Nevada Reno

JAMA. 1997;278(10):818.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.

—The article "Characteristics of Women With and Without Breast Augmentation"¹ suggests that characteristics of women with breast augmentation may confound the relationship between silicone gel breast implants and connective tissue disease. Because research on breast implants is of immediate interest to the media and is potentially powerful in controversial litigation, researchers should be exceptionally careful in their analysis and presentation of data. Reliance on scientific findings published in peer-reviewed journals has become increasingly important since the 1993 Daubert²decision, which changed the evidentiary standard from "principles and methods generally accepted in the scientific community" to "evidentiary reliability... based on scientific validity."

A careful reading of the study by Dr Cook and colleagues¹ reveals several weaknesses that challenge the implications of the study for understanding the relationship between silicone gel implants and disease.

First, the analysis draws on existing data from 2 samples designed to study . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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