University Responds to Conflict of Interest Probe

University of Wisconsin officials said they are taking action to resolve a conflict of interest scandal that found researchers were making millions of dollars from medical device manufacturers and not disclosing it.

In a recent letter to Sens. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), University of Wisconsin President Kevin Reilly and University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Carolyn Martin said, “A task force was established for this purpose, with the goal of identifying, managing, and eliminating conflicts of interest in clinical care.”  (See the letter in its entirety at http://tctvideo.madison.com/UW/grassley.pdf.)

Researcher Dr. Thomas Zdeblick received $19 million over five years from Minneapolis, Minn.-based medical device manufacturer Medtronic, Inc., for helping to promote and develop the Infuse Bone Graft, according to a Wall Street Journal report. It also said payment amounts were far more than disclosed to the university. 

The university’s policy requires its researchers to disclose when they receive more than $20,000 from a device maker.  According to reports in The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, more than 30 university physicians topped that amount in 2006 and 2007.

Zdeblick told the university he had received $20,000 or more from Medtronic. One year, he reported getting $40,000 or more.  But as a letter from Grassley states, the money Zdeblick received went well beyond $20,000, or even $40,000.  According to Medtronic’s records, he received anywhere between $2.6 million to $4.6 million in royalty and consulting payments per year.

Zdeblick told the Journal he has been telling patients about his financial ties to device makers since 1991.