The relevance of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) for medical publishing and research

The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors is a leading independent institution providing guidance for the report of biomedical research and health related topics in medical journals. Established in 1978, it is currently constituted by editors of fourteen general medical journals from different countries, plus one representative for the US National Library of Medicine and one representative for the World Association of Biomedical Journal Editors. Since 1978 the Committee provides a document, originally named "Uniform Requirements...", "to help authors, editors, and others involved in peer review and biomedical publishing create and distribute accurate, clear, unbiased medical journal articles". This document has been updated several times and the last version was released in August 2013, now renamed "Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals", available in www.icmje.org and citable as "ICMJE Recommendations': A vast proportion of medical journals, worldwide, have adopted these recommendations as rules. The ICMJE discusses and provides guidance on several relevant aspects including criteria on authorship, peer review, scientific misconduct, conflicts of interest, clinical trials registration, good editorial practices, the relations between editors and journal owners, the protection of individuals subject to medical research, the solvency of electronic publications, among others. The 2013 ICMJE Annual Meeting took place in Santiago, Chile, in November 4 and 5. The photograph shows attendants to the final session.