Case Report
Case Report (Detailed Report of a Single Patient or Small Series) · Also known as: case series, case study, clinical case, patient report
A case report is a detailed clinical account of one patient's diagnosis, treatment, and outcome, typically used to describe novel, unusual, or educational cases not previously reported. Unlike controlled studies with comparison groups, case reports are observational, non-comparative, and generate hypotheses rather than test them. Occupying the lowest rung of evidence hierarchy, case reports are nonetheless valuable for early signal detection, documenting rare diseases, and communicating clinical wisdom. The CARE guidelines (2013) provide reporting standards to ensure completeness and transparency.
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When to use it
Write a case report when you encounter a clinically important, novel, or unusual case worth documenting. Submit case reports describing: rare disease presentations, atypical manifestations of common diseases, adverse drug/treatment effects (especially novel or unexpected), treatment breakthroughs or unexpected treatment failures, rare complications, or diagnostic challenges. Case series (2–10 related cases) strengthen the signal over single cases. Submit to general medical journals (New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, BMJ publish high-impact case reports) or specialty journals with case report sections. Case reports are rapid to prepare and publish, making them suitable for communicating urgent safety signals or emerging conditions.
Strengths & limitations
- Rapid dissemination: case reports can be published months after occurrence, faster than prospective studies, enabling early signal detection.
- Rare disease documentation: case reports may be the primary literature on rare diseases, establishing diagnostic criteria and management experience.
- Hypothesis generation: unusual cases prompt investigation into mechanisms and may motivate larger studies.
- Educational value: clinicians learn from cases describing diagnostic challenges, treatment innovations, and management lessons.
- Low cost and simple logistics: requires only one patient, no control group, minimal additional data collection beyond clinical documentation.
- No comparison group: cannot assess causation or quantify effect; temporal association is not proof of causality.
- Prone to publication bias: unusual, dramatic cases overrepresented; failures and typical cases underreported.
- Anecdotal: one case cannot establish frequency or prevalence; incidence of adverse effects cannot be calculated.
- Confounding uncontrolled: impossible to isolate the effect of one variable; alternative explanations cannot be ruled out.
- Low evidence hierarchy: case reports sit at the base of evidence pyramids; clinical decisions should not rest on single reports without supporting controlled evidence.
Frequently asked
Is a case report considered research and does it require IRB approval?
Case reports are generally considered clinical documentation rather than research requiring full IRB review. However, policies vary. If your institution requires approval, contact your IRB. Most institutions exempt retrospective case reports from full review if they involve no intervention beyond standard care and pose minimal risk. Prospective case reports involving experimental treatment require formal approval. Always ensure informed consent and anonymity protection.
How do I ensure patient anonymity while providing sufficient clinical detail?
Use patient initials or code numbers (e.g., 'Patient A'); omit exact dates, using age and seasons or months instead; avoid hospital record numbers and identifiable institutional details; omit or generalize unique demographic features (e.g., 'rural Midwestern United States' instead of city name). Ensure case details are not sufficiently distinctive that colleagues could identify the patient. Obtain consent after anonymization, showing patients the anonymized manuscript to confirm they cannot be identified.
Can I submit a case report to multiple journals simultaneously?
No. Follow the ICMJE Uniform Requirements: submit to one journal at a time; cases involving single patients should not be split into multiple reports. Submit to your target journal; if rejected, then submit elsewhere. Case series (2–10 related cases) are acceptable as single publication; do not fragment into separate case reports.
What makes a case report novel enough to publish?
Novelty does not require a disease never before described. Rather: Does the case represent a rare disease variant? An atypical presentation? A novel treatment approach? A new adverse effect? A diagnostic challenge with important lessons? Does it fill a gap in literature? Search literature carefully (Google Scholar, PubMed, specialty journals) to confirm novelty. If your case is the 50th report of the same presentation, it is not novel unless your case adds new insight (e.g., a treatment approach, outcome data, mechanism hypothesis).
Should I include a brief literature review in a case report?
Yes. Include a 1–2 paragraph background section reviewing what is known about the diagnosis, condition, or treatment in your case. This contextualizes your case and clarifies what is novel. Cite 5–15 key references. The discussion should compare your case to prior literature and explain what your case adds.
Sources
- Gagnier, J. J., Kienle, G., Altman, D. G., Moher, D., Lakatos, P., & Conboy, T. A. (2013). The CARE guidelines: consensus-based clinical case report guideline development. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 67(1), 46–51. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.08.003 ↗
- CARE Guidelines Checklist (2013). Enhancing the Quality and Transparency of Health Research. http://www.care-statement.org link ↗
- Nissen, S. E., & Wolski, K. (2007). Effect of rosiglitazone on the risk of myocardial infarction and death from cardiovascular causes. New England Journal of Medicine, 356(24), 2457–2471. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa072761 ↗
How to cite this page
ScholarGate. (2026, June 3). Case Report (Detailed Report of a Single Patient or Small Series). ScholarGate. https://scholargate.app/en/academic-writing/case-report-article
Which method?
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