A Quantitative and Narrative Evaluation of Goodman and Gilmans Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics

Objective: Goodman and Gilmans The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics (GGPBT) has been a cornerstone in the education of pharmacists, physicians, and pharmacologists for decades. The objectives of this report were to describe and evaluate the 13th edition of GGPBT including 1) author characteristics; 2) recency of citations; 3) conflict of interest (CoI) disclosure, and 4) expert evaluation of chapters. Methods: Contributors (N = 115) sex, professional degrees, and presence of undisclosed potential CoI as reported by the Center for Medicare and Medicaids Open Payments (2013 to 2017) were examined. Year of publication of citations were extracted relative to comparison textbooks (Katzungs Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (KatBCP) and DiPiros Pharmacotherapy: A Pathophysiologic Approach (DiPPAPA). Content experts in pharmacy and pharmacology education provided chapter reviews. Results: The percent of GGPBT contributors that were female (20.9%) was equivalent to those in KatBCP (17.0%). Citations in GGPBT (11.5 + 0.2 years) were significantly older than those in KatBCP (10.4 + 0.2) and DiPPAPA (9.1 + 0.1, p < .0001). Contributors to GGPBT received three million in undisclosed remuneration from pharmaceutical companies (Maximum author = $743,718). In contrast, DiPPAPA made CoI information available. However, self-reported disclosures were not uniformly congruent with Open Payments reported data. Reviewers noted several strengths but also some areas for improvement. Conclusion: GGPBT will continue to be an important component of the biomedical curriculum. Areas of improvement include more diverse authorship, improved conflict of interest transparency, and greater inclusion of more recent citations.