As editors, we are often asked what we are looking for in a manuscript that would make it worthy of publication. Your manuscript does not necessarily need to be a first-in-human procedure or technique, nor does it need to report on a patient case of a very rare disease. However, it does need to be well written and educational. We are looking for manuscripts that our readers will be interested in and learn something from. Even a routine patient presentation of a common cardiovascular condition can be interesting if the story is told well and clearly, and it contains important take home messages.
JACC: Case Reports is a very visual journal. We expect authors to submit crisp and clear images and videos that help the reader understand how the diagnosis was made. If a pathology specimen was obtained, we want you to include images that support the diagnosis. One of the most frequent reasons for the editors to reject a case is that the diagnosis made was presumed, but not proven. If there was no indicated biopsy, serologic testing, or genetic testing done that nails down the diagnosis, we will be less interested in publishing your findings. If surgery was performed, we want to see the surgeon’s view. Interoperative images and videos can be very compelling, as are “back table” images of a pathologic specimen. If an autopsy was done, information and imaging from that procedure can be critical.
There are some reasons that we may return your manuscript to you before sending it out for reviewers to evaluate (Figure 1). The most common reason for this is that you did not read and follow the instructions to authors and upload what is needed for your final submission. Another reason for a “reject de novo” decision on your manuscript is that it is not easily readable. Attention to grammar and syntax is very important, so it is a good idea to have someone with grammar and writing skills take a look at your manuscript before submission. A not infrequent comment at our editorial board meetings is, “I don’t think that the senior author reviewed this paper.” A reject de novo decision is also made if we think that the revisions that are needed are so extensive that we are not sure that the authors can easily provide all of them.
Figure 1.
Process of Evaluating Submissions in JACC: Case Reports
If we decide to reject your manuscript without sending it out for review, this is often because the quality of the manuscript does not reach priority for the journal. Manuscripts that are not well written, lack good images, report on very common disease findings, and do not contain appropriate references will be rejected by the editors without review. This is also known as a “desk reject.” Often the editor will include 1 or 2 statements to the authors that explain why the manuscript is not suitable.
Once an editor takes an initial look at your manuscript and finds it well written, novel, and of educational value, the manuscript is sent out for expert review. We do this in several different ways. One method is known as a “consultation session.” This is an electronic discussion among a few members of the editorial board about your manuscript. Alternatively, an associate editor make ask 1 of the journal’s assistant editors to help with review. Most commonly, however, a manuscript is sent out for expert external review. We ask all kinds of experts to take a look at your manuscript and give us feedback on its priority, educational value, accuracy of diagnosis and management, and conclusions made. Experts are usually very willing to review manuscripts pertaining to their fields, and this type of review helps the editors make a decision about the suitability of your manuscript for publication. If more than 1 expert recommends rejection, it is rare for the editorial board to reach a different decision.
If the reviewers like your manuscript, they still may want you to revise your manuscript for clarity or ask you to provide additional imaging or information about the patient, diagnostic testing, or therapeutic procedures that were done. A “revision” decision is very favorable. It means that the reviewers and editors like your manuscript, and we think that the revisions requested are such that you will be able to make them without much difficulty. Every now and then, we like a manuscript so much on first reading that we give it an “accept without revision” decision. This type of decision is rare. These manuscripts are universally well written, are timely, make great educational points, and describe appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic steps in a clear and logical manner.
Keep in mind that the editorial board is on your side. We really want to publish your manuscripts, and we will go to great lengths to help you get your paper across the finish line to acceptance. We often add editors’ comments to those of the reviewer. Pay attention to those. Such comments are the guideposts on the road to help you reformat and restructure your manuscript to make it to acceptance. If you have questions after you receive a decision, we are always happy to discuss them. JACC: Case Reports is in its sixth year now, and it is going strong and growing. We look forward to receiving your best cases!