[Is it pertinent to investigate the relations between physicians and the drug industry].

Objective: To analyse the opinions of physicians on the appropriateness of research into the relationships between doctors and pharmaceutical industry, and to evaluate the usefulness of email survey in this research.

Material And Methods: Survey via email of 373 authors of papers published in Spanish medical journals in 2007. The relationships between doctors and the industry was measured by asking doctors what they had received from industry during last year, the value in euro, and the number of visits from industry representatives.