Editorial Process

An expert reviewer, one of our editors, or one of our contributing editors prepares the preliminary report on a drug (for The Medical Letter) or drugs for common disorders (for Treatment Guidelines) in terms of their effectiveness, adverse effects and possible alternatives. Both published and available unpublished studies are carefully examined, paying special attention to the results of controlled clinical trials.

The preliminary draft is edited and sent to our Contributing Editors, to 10-20 other investigators who have clinical and experimental experience with the drug or type of drug or disease under review, to the FDA and, if applicable, to the CDC, and to the first authors of all the articles cited in the text.

Many critical observations, suggestions and questions are received from the reviewers and are incorporated into the article during the revision process. Further communication as needed is followed by checking and editing to make sure the final appraisal is not only accurate, but also easy to read.