Retraction: Increased risk of fibromyalgia in patients with atopic dermatitis: A nationwide longitudinal study

The article “Increased risk of fibromyalgia in patients with atopic dermatitis: A nationwide longitudinal study” is being retracted following a post-publication editorial review that identified inconsistencies in the reported construction and presentation of the study cohorts.

Although the methods state that the control group was matched with the atopic-dermatitis cohort for age and sex, the published data show exactly identical distributions for additional variables, including asthma and every reported income category, in an exact 1:10 ratio. The article does not explain whether these additional variables were also used for matching or how these identical distributions arose. Because the validity of the reported hazard ratios depends upon the accuracy of cohort selection, matching and statistical adjustment, these inconsistencies raise material concerns regarding the reliability and reproducibility of the principal association reported in the study.

In Figure 1 the data source is from 2000 to 2013, but for matched control data source is from 1995 to 2010 (as stated in Abstract). The authors should have explained why the cohort of AD and control duration of data sources are different.

In Figure 1, the authors should have first reported the total number of eligible participants, then number excluded with mental disorder and incomplete data separately, and lastly included the number of deaths and fibromyalgia subjects.

In Figure 2, the y-axis title should have been “Cumulative Hazard” instead of cumulative hazard ratio. It is cumulative hazard in each group. As resolving these concerns would require verification and potential reconstruction of the cohort and statistical analysis rather than a limited correction, the article is being retracted to maintain the accuracy of the scholarly record. This decision does not, in itself, constitute a finding of research misconduct.

Prof. Sujay Khandpur

Editor in Chief

Indian Journal of Dermatology, Venereology and Leprology (IJDVL)