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. 1994 Jul;31(1):61-4.
doi: 10.1016/s0190-9622(94)70136-9.

Reference accuracy in the dermatologic literature

P M George  1 , K Robbins
Affiliations

Reference accuracy in the dermatologic literature

P M George et al. J Am Acad Dermatol. 1994 Jul.

Abstract

Background: The reference list is an important part of a scientific article. To be useful it must be accurate.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of references in the dermatologic literature.

Methods: We randomly selected 240 references (60 per journal) from the Archives of Dermatology, the British Journal of Dermatology, this Journal, and the Journal of Investigative Dermatology and checked them against the original articles.

Results: The overall rate of citation error (the information identifying the source) was 41%, and the quotation error (inconsistency between the statement referenced and the original source) was 35%. Only 36% of references were free of error.

Conclusion: This study shows that the rate of citation and quotation errors is unacceptably high in the dermatologic literature, which significantly diminishes the value of the reference list.

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