Of the adverse events reported in this blinded study (where the patient, investigator and company do not know whether the patient received Seroxat or a dummy pill) only one - headache - was attributed by the independent investors to Seroxat.

BBC: GlaxoSmithKline logo

"We did think it was appropriate, as the study was still blinded, to try and get some outside opinions to just validate that the assumptions we made when the study started, " said Spiegel.

FORBES: Vytorin's Missing Fail-Safes

Dr. Hartwell, who wasn't involved in the study, said social-network trials aren't likely to replace conventional randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials, the gold-standard for generating medical evidence.

WSJ: ALS Study Falls Short, But Use of Social Media Holds Promise