Publishing research from developing countries

The topic of publishing research from developing countries brings together two important ethical imperatives, both of which are widely ignored. First, if the world is to see maximum benefit from health research, then the balance of research between the developed and developing worlds needs to shift dramatically. At the moment most health problems are in the developing world and most research is in the developed world [1]. Globalization may worsen the divide by making the rich richer and the poor poorer, but I see positive signs that the world is waking up to the importance of research in the developing world [2]. The second ethical imperative is to publish research [3]. If researchers do not publish their research then they distort the research record, potentially leading astray those who undertake the important work of systematically reviewing evidence.