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| FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK |
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| Year : 2023 | Volume
: 3
| Issue : 3 | Page : 133 |
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Keeping the downy mildew at bay!
Kirtisudha Mishra
Department of Pediatrics, Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya, Delhi, India
| Date of Web Publication | 14-Aug-2023 |
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Kirtisudha Mishra
Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya, Delhi
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None
DOI: 10.4103/ipcares.ipcares_177_23
How to cite this article:
Mishra K. Keeping the downy mildew at bay!. Indian Pediatr Case Rep 2023;3:133 |
As IPCaRes now grows from its sapling stage towards maturity, we see a steady flow of submissions, from far and wide, encompassing all article categories. This is indeed encouraging, as it not only provides material for the forthcoming issues and creates a substantial volume of citable data, but also indicates that the journal has begun to pick up stream. We appreciate the support of the authors for enriching the journal with their unusual case reports.
With such a positive development, the journal should only be expected to proceed in an upward trajectory, BUT for certain undesirable factors which can eat into the academic fabric of the journal. As editors, reviewers, and authors, we are the ones who bring forth facts regarding clinical medicine into the public domain. We must not forget that all that is set down in print is added to the medical literature for posterity.
Publishing is not merely a personal achievement, but a social responsibility to ensure that no “untruth” reaches the readers. I chose to bring up this issue, as I realized while perusing the submissions, that, more often than not, the authors, who possibly are in the initial phase of their academic career, naïve in the field of publication, in their zeal to highlight their case, overlook the finer details, the differentials, and the more common entities. This is to reiterate that it is nothing but basic principles of medical teaching that a diagnosis of a condition cannot be accepted without justifiably excluding the possible differentials. Accordingly, a clinical condition cannot be described and reported in isolation without a thorough work-up for related conditions. Detailing may be tedious, but it gives credit and credibility to the authors.
Of all the facts which make a case report credible, the most important, perhaps, is its integrity. Novelty, uniqueness and unusualness can all be played down by factual inaccuracy. It has come to my notice that, many-a-times, there are discrepancies in facts between the original and revised versions. Authors in their attempt to clarify the queries of the reviewers, resort to changing the facts (clinical details/investigation values) regarding the case, to make the case consistent with the diagnosis. Authors are admonished against such manipulation, as, facts if changed, create serious doubt on the authenticity of the case and integrity of the authors. Such a report, even if extraordinary and worthy of dissemination in the scientific world, has to be declined for publication. It not only tarnishes the image of the authors and their institution, but also makes the entire processing of the article, culminate in a bootless errand.
The focus of our Journal is to educate young pediatricians–postgraduate students, residents, and new practitioners. In our strive to maintain this focus, upholding to integrity, quality, and academic worth, such questionable reports can seriously impair the intent of the Journal.
It is well known that if the downy mildew infests a plant, it infiltrates all the veins and destroys the crop. We need to save this growing Journal from the downy mildew.
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
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