Republication of “Editor’s Response to ‘Letter Regarding: A Novel Casting Technique for Tongue-Type Calcaneus Fractures with Soft Tissue Compromise’”

Commentary: Editors response to the letter to the editor emphasizing that authors need to avoid claiming to be the first or the largest study for these are neither necessary nor sufficient conditions for publication, add nothing to the science, and are often false.

Dear Readers:

The editorial staff and I would like to thank Dr. Hsu and Dr. Lareau for having alerted us to some limitations of our review process and for having creating an opportunity for improvement. Transforming a submitted draft manuscript into one that is ready for publication is an immense task. The majority of the work in this process falls to our reviewers who do an outstanding job. The reviewers make suggestions which lead to improvements in both the form and the content of the work. It is hard, if not impossible, for them to find every shortcoming of the manuscript. It is thus incumbent on each author to thoroughly evaluate the literature and cite it appropriately in their work prior to initial submission.

The editorial staff would like to apologize for having allowed the incorrect claim of novelty to be published in this article. As editors we try to prevent, or at least discourage, authors from claiming to be the first, or the largest study of its kind. These claims are neither a necessary nor sufficient criteria for publication, add nothing to the science, and are often false. We ask that authors state the significance of their work in terms of its contribution to solving a problem rather than simply on the timing or the size of the study itself.

Finally, we would like to thank our readers, authors, and reviewers for each contributing to the growth of Foot & Ankle Orthopaedics. We hope to become your trusted source of up to date information about the clinical practice of foot and ankle surgery.

L. Daniel Latt, MD, PhDEditor-in-ChiefFoot & Ankle Orthopaedics