The CARE guidelines (CAse REports) were developed by an international group of experts to improve the accuracy, transparency and usefulness of case reports. These guidelines have been endorse by numerous medical journals, including BMJ, a large publisher of case report articles.
CARE: Case report guidelines (nd). What are the CARE guidelines. https://www.care-statement.org/
These guidelines must be cited in your references.
CARE checklist. https://www.care-statement.org/checklist. Published 2013. Accessed 2022.
| Title | Include the diagnosis and the words "case report" |
| Keywords | Include 2-5 keywords associated with the diagnosis or intervention; include "case report" |
|
Abstract (Does not include references) |
Introduction: What is unique about this case? What does it add to scientific literature? |
| Main symptoms and/or important clinical findings | |
| The main diagnosis, therapeutic interventions and outcomes | |
| Conclusion: What is the main "take-away?" | |
| Introduction | One - two paragraphs summarizing the uniqueness of this case (may include references) |
| Patient information | De-identified patient specific information |
| Primary patient related concerns and symptoms | |
| Relevant past medical history (include family and psycho-social) | |
| Relevant past interventions with outcomes | |
| Clinical findings | Significant physical examination and clinical findings |
| Timeline | Historical and current information related to this case |
| Diagnostic assessment | Diagnostic testing |
| Diagnostic challenges | |
| Prognosis | |
| Therapeutic intervention | Types of therapeutic intervention |
| Administration of intervention | |
| Changes of intervention with rationale | |
| Follow-up and outcomes | Clinician and patient-assessed outcomes |
| Important follow-up test results | |
| Intervention adherence and tolerance | |
| Adverse or unanticipated events | |
| Discussion | Strengths and limitations related to this case |
| Discussion of relevant medical literature with references | |
| Scientific rationale for any conclusions (include assessment of possible causes) | |
| Primary "take-away" lessons (one paragraph) | |
| Patient perspective | Patient impressions of treatment (one - two paragraphs) |
| Informed consent | Did the patient provide informed consent? Was consent requested? |
BMJ Case Reports is a premier open-access case reports journal. The ATSU Library pays for an institutional fellowship, enabling any ATSU-affiliated authors (including students!) to publish in BMJ Case Reports at no cost. Reach out to your liaison librarian for more information.
The SCARE Guidelines are separate guidelines designed to structure surgical case reports, and should be followed when writing a surgical case report. See the links below for more information.
