Tuyển tập báo cáo các nghiên cứu khoa học quốc tế ngành y học dành cho các bạn tham khảo đề tài: If the data contradict the theory, throw out the data: Nicotine addiction in the 2010 report of the Surgeon General | Frenk and Dar Harm Reduction Journal 2011 8 12 http content 8 1 12 HARM REDUCTION JOURNAL COMMENTARY Open Access If the data contradict the theory throw out the data Nicotine addiction in the 2010 report of the Surgeon General Hanan Frenk1 2 and Reuven Dar1 Abstract The reports of US Surgeon General on smoking are considered the authoritative statement on the scientific state of the art in this field. The previous report on nicotine addiction published in 1988 is one of the most cited references in scientific articles on smoking and often the only citation provided for specific statements of facts regarding nicotine addiction. In this commentary we review the chapter on nicotine addiction presented in the recent report of the Surgeon General. We show that the nicotine addiction model presented in this chapter which closely resembles its 22 years old predecessor could only be sustained by systematically ignoring all contradictory evidence. As a result the present SG s chapter on nicotine addiction which purportedly documents how nicotine compares with heroin and cocaine in its hold on users and its effects on the brain is remarkably biased and misleading. Keywords tobacco smoking nicotine dependence Surgeon General addiction Background The reports of US Surgeon General on smoking are considered the authoritative statement on the scientific state of the art in this field. The previous report 1 is one of the most cited references in scientific articles on smoking and is often the only citation provided for specific statements of facts regarding smoking. As such one would expect this official report to present an updated and carefully balanced view of the research on smoking. At least as concerns the issue of nicotine addiction however the latest report 2 fails to fulfill this mission. The new report adheres to the former one of 1988 1 in equating smoking with nicotine addiction. It reiterates the three major conclusions of the 1988 report
