Peer Review Process, Editorial Decisions, and Manuscript Resubmission: A Reference for Novice Researchers.

evaluates a submission for scientific advancement, clinical relevance, new information, and interest to the journal’s readers.7 For quality, the editor considers the suitability and rigorousness of the methods, data analysis processes, appropriateness of the conclusions, and quality of writing.7 If importance and quality expectations are not met, a manuscript will be rejected before peer evaluation. The editor may also reject a manuscript on the basis of editorial priority and the value of the submitted manuscript vs other manuscripts under review.7 As noted in the AMA Manual of Style, “The reality of limited space may also be a consideration... Cyberspace may appear infinite, but the attention span and patience of readers are not.”7(p303) In essence, if a manuscript does not fit with the scope of the journal, or if it is submitted in an unsuitable form, it will likely be rejected without evaluation.1 If a manuscript meets the basic criteria, however, it will move forward to the peer review process.