It is well-known fact that to survive in the academic world one needs to publish reasonably a good research work which should have peer approval and score high by academic yardsticks applicable to publications. Some are fortunate to have the innate quality of writing well and others have to develop it to a reasonable standard. Those who belong to the basic sciences show their academic excellence by publishing the research in reputed journals and feel secure. Whereas, the clinicians look for unusual case reports and some organized clinical research related to their specialty involving patient data and its analytical outcome. As a reviewer of Journal of Contemporary Clinical Dentistry since its inception, I had the privilege of scrutinizing a number of articles for publication. It has been a unique experience as a reviewer and what has stuck me the most is something which I must share with the readers of this journal. Most of the case reports are being submitted in a hurry to just publish the case report without making any effort to render the required treatment to the affected patient. However, if any treatment had been rendered, the records are conveniently not submitted with the manuscript. One can see neglected caries, periodontal disease, gross malocclusion, untreated lesions in such case reports. It may be important to show the actual condition in the clinical records, but is definitely not acceptable to neglect the treatable conditions. Many case reports just theoretically describe the possible treatment modalities without actually resorting to treatment. I always keep wondering what really happened to such patients. Where is the Hippocratic Oath? It may be fine if a rare anomaly is reported and the immediate treatment has to wait due to the age factor or other limitation. However, as dentists or specialists, how can we ignore the basic dental treatment and concentrate on publishing a case repot. It would be more appropriate and ethical to provide the required treatment and then take the records for publication. Single case reports related to well-established treatment modalities should also be avoided as they serve no purpose in adding to the existing knowledge.
It is hoped that future submissions of case reports to this journal would be put to the suggested steps and avoid rejection. This journal encourages publication of case reports and dedicates large number of pages in each issue, fully realizing that rare case reports/innovative treatment modalities go a long way in furthering the progress of science and knowledge.