The CARE Checklist for Case Reports is a helpful resource for writing transparent, valuable case reports.
Aren't sure if your case is unique enough for a case report? Feel free to contact the pediatrics librarian (gina.genova@louisville.edu) and request a search for previous cases!
Many journals accept case reports. However, many journals that accept case reports are open access only and require authors to pay an article processing charge (APC). This is standard practice for open access publications and is not inherently a bad thing, but not all authors have the funding available to submit to these journals.
This page contains information on where you can submit pediatric case reports for publication without a fee.
The University of Louisville Libraries has a fellowship with BMJ Case Reports, which allows UofL authors to submit and publish articles for free. Contact your librarian for the fellowship code before submission.
**Our fellowship does not include open access publication. If you wish your case report to be published open access in BMJ Case Reports (as opposed to be available only to subscribers), additional payment will be required.
The table below lists journals that accept case reports and publish pediatric content. This resource would not be possible without the prior work of Gotschall et al. The journals below were found by filtering which titles in their dataset did not charge authors APCs to publish. All journals that included pediatrics terms in their titles (e.g., Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics) were included. Non-pediatrics specific journals were included if they have published pediatric-related research within the past several years.
Caveats
Journals Accepting Pediatric Case Reports (Fee-Free, Early 2025)
| Specialty | Journals |
|---|---|
|
Adolescent Medicine |
Journal of Adolescent Health |
|
Cardiology
|
World Journal of Pediatric and Congenital Heart Surgery Canadian Journal of Cardiology Catheterization & Cardiovascular Interventions - should "present preliminary information on a technique or idea that may find widespread application to stimulate productive discussions." Clinical Research in Cardiology - as letter to the editor. International Heart Journal - should include a comprehensive literature review and compare the presented case with published literature. Journal of Electrocardiology - as short communication. Journal of Interventional Cardiac Electrophysiology - must be submitted with a cover letter describing why the case is unique. Videos are encouraged. |
| Child and Adolescent Psychiatry |
Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry - as letter to the editor. Bipolar Disorders - can be published as a "clinical conundrum," which "illustrates contentious clinical issues... and aims to provide advice to practicing clinicians." Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry Early Intervention in Psychiatry Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology Harvard Review of Psychiatry - can be published as "clinical challenges," which "present a clinical case report and are followed by expert discussion... from multiple perspectives. These cases present diagnostic or treatment challenges or highlight a current debate." International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine International Journal of Psychopharmacology Journal of Psychiatric Practice Journal of the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry - as letter to the editor, or as review with illustrative case report. |
| Critical Care |
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine - as letter to the editor. |
| Dermatology |
Australian Journal of Dermatology Clinical and Experimental Dermatology - as correspondence. Dermatology Online Journal - requires both clinical and histology images. International Journal of Dermatology - as correspondence. Journal of Dermatology - as concise communication. |
| Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics | Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics - as brief report. |
| Emergency Medicine |
American Journal of Emergency Medicine - must be a case treated in the ED and unique in the emergency medicine literature. Canadian Journal of Emergency Medicine - as clinical correspondence. |
| Endocrinology |
Hormone Research in Paediatrics Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism |
| Gastroenterology |
Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition Clinical Journal of Gastroenterology Clinics and Research in Hepatology and Gastroenterology - as letter to the editor. Dysphagia - can be published as a "clinical conundrum," which present a "diagnostic and/or therapeutic challenge." Images are encouraged. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition European Journal of Gastroenterology & Hepatology Journal of Crohn's and Colitis Neurogastroenterology & Motility - case reports may be transferred to a companion OA journal upon submission, which would require a fee to publish. |
| General Pediatrics |
Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health Journal of Pediatric Health Care |
| Global Health | American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene |
| Hematology/Oncology |
Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Pediatric Blood & Cancer - as brief report or letter to the editor depending on novelty. American Journal of Hematology - can be published as "Clinical Problem Solving," which "reproduce the step-by-step process used... with novel and/or unusually challenging clinical presentations." British Journal of Haematology Clinical Lymphoma Myeloma and Leukemia Current Problems in Cancer - case reports will also be considered for a companion OA journal, which will require a fee to publish if accepted there. European Journal of Cancer - as correspondence. Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology - case reports may be transferred to a companion OA journal, which would require a fee to publish. Journal of Immunotherapy - as brief communication. Should include an overview of previously published cases. Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network - only considers reports in which a molecular finding informed management. |
| Infectious Disease |
Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy - publishes "Challenging Clinical Cases in Antimicrobial Resistance." Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease Infectious Diseases Now - as short communication. International Journal of STD & AIDS Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy - as correspondence. Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy Journal of Travel Medicine - as letter to the editor. |
| Medical Genetics |
American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A - will not typically publish cases of "new variants in known disease genes--unless specific attributes of the variants are especially novel or important, or relevant functional analyses have been performed." |
| Neonatal Medicine | |
| Nephrology |
Pediatric Nephrology - does not publish novel mutations of well-characterized genes unless there is also a novel phenotype. |
| Palliative Medicine |
BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care |
| Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation |
American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine - as letter to the editor. International Journal of Rehabilitation Research Journal of Sport Rehabilitation PM & R - as "Clinical Letters." |
| Pulmonology, Allergy, and Immunology |
Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology Pediatric Pulmonology - as "Clinical Curiosity," "Clinical Correspondence," or "imaging Correspondence." American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine - as letter to the editor. Journal of Immunotherapy - as brief communication. Should include an overview of previously published cases. Ocular Immunology and Inflammation - as brief report. |
| Rheumatology |
International Journal of Rheumatic Diseases - as letter to the editor. Journal of Rheumatology - as letter to the editor. Rheumatology - as letter to the editor. |
| Topic: Ethics | Journal of Clinical Ethics |
| Topic: Pharmacology and Pharmacy |
Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy - as "Challenging Clinical Cases in Antimicrobial Resistance." Drug Discoveries & Therapeutics Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology International Journal of Psychopharmacology Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy Journal of Drugs in Dermatology |
| Topic: Telemedicine | |
| Topic: Transplant |