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Letters to the Editor to:

Scientific Articles:
Peter M. Waters and Susan L. Stewart
Surgical Treatment of Nonunion and Avascular Necrosis of the Proximal Part of the Scaphoid in Adolescents
J Bone Joint Surg Am 2002; 84: 915-920 [Abstract] [Full text] [PDF]
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Electronic letters published:

[Read Letter to the Editor] Editor's Response
James D Heckman MD   (17 June 2002)
[Read Letter to the Editor] What constitutes a case report?
Charles T Mehlman   (17 June 2002)

Editor's Response 17 June 2002
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James D Heckman MD,
Editor-in-Chief JBJS
JBJS

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Re: Editor's Response

heckman{at}jbjs.org James D Heckman MD

Dr Mehlman: You make an excellent point. I believe that in this case we erred and should have published this series of three cases in the 'Case Reports' section of the Journal. Thank you for bringing it to our attention. We will try to be more scrupulous regarding such designations in the future. JDH

What constitutes a case report? 17 June 2002
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Charles T Mehlman,
Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgeon
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

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Re: What constitutes a case report?

ctmehlman{at}post.harvard.edu Charles T Mehlman

To the Editor:

Two valuable articles that appear in the June 2002 issue of the Journal are those by Waters & Stewart (AVN of the scaphoid in adolescents) and Luk et al (anterior approach to cerviothoracic junction).

It is interesting to note that the Waters & Stewart paper includes three (3) patients and is presented in the Jouranl as a scientific study while the Luk paper with its five (5) patients is presented as a case report fashion. This begs the question: What constitutes a case report?

The implications of how an article is labeled can be significant. For instance, when a structured review or meta-analysis is conducted case reports are almost always automatically eliminated from consideration. One would certainly hope that an evidence-based reviewer would identify the Waters & Stewart paper for what it is - an important three (3) patient case report.