The problem is a shortage of page space. Only a small number of the case reports submitted to scientific medical periodicals can be accepted for publication. Most editorial boards attach the highest priority to reports of clinical investigations in a consecutive series of patients. Editorial responsibility for publication of data from clinical trials and other multiple-subject studies limits space for single-case studies. This shortage of page space grows more serious as the volume of excellent research increases throughout the world.
Although we recognize the educational merits of a carefully described case study, the editorial board members of this periodical can justify publication of case reports only if these data establish new principles or modify currently accepted concepts. There is no longer room for the description of the "sixth case" of a new syndrome, and we experience a similar inability to publish every report of adverse drug reactions. Problems related to