BEIJING: A leading British medical journal has retracted 43 published articles after it was found that the authors had fabricated their peer reviews. As many as 41 articles were written by doctors who worked in Chinese hospitals .

The authors of the “fake” articles have allegedly used the services of agents involved in “selling pre-written manuscripts to fabricate contact details for peer reviewers,” according to UK’s Committee on Publication Ethnics .

The committee said the behavior was inappropriate and a systematic attempt to manipulate the peer review process.

Authors of articles retracted by the journal, Biomed Central , come from 38 different Chinese hospitals including some respected ones like the Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Shanghai Chest Hospital, People's Liberation Army 452 Hospital and Shanghai East Hospital.

One of the authors, Yang Jianmin who is associate chief physician of Hangzhou First People's Hospital , admitted to using the service of an article writing agency. Yang told the Caixin magazine that he paid $3,220 to the agency for getting the article written and published.

The senior doctor said he had little time left for scientific research after handling a large number of surgeries. But government rules made it difficult for him to be promoted unless he has articles published in respected medical journals.

Sources said the revelation is significant because China has surpassed the United States to become number one in the number of theses and dissertations published in scholarly journals in the world. But China does not figure in the list of 100 countries producing the most cited theses and dissertations, reports said.

A survey of doctors carried out by Zhengzhou-based newspaper Orient Today showed that 80% of 1,920 doctors polled believe that fabrication of research and peer reviews was rampant. Getting promotion in their jobs was the main purpose of getting articles published, they said.

Jigisha Patel, Biomed Central’s associate editorial director for research integrity, does not consider the issue “a China problem.”