Case Report Examples: Structure and Writing Analysis

You can learn a great deal about writing case reports by reading well-reported examples critically: noticing how authors state the lesson, structure the case, use a timeline, handle consent, compare with the literature and phrase conclusions. This guide shows how to analyse published reports rather than reproduce them.

How to choose examples

• Pick two or three recent reports from the journal you plan to submit to.
• Choose reports on topics near your own.
• Prefer journals that state they follow CARE.

A method for analysis

For each report, note:

1. Title: does it state the condition and the feature? How long is it?
2. Abstract: how is the lesson stated?
3. Introduction: how many paragraphs? How is novelty phrased?
4. Case section: the order, units, the timeline and any table or figure.
5. Discussion: how does it compare with other reports? How are limitations stated?
6. Conclusion: is it specific and modest?
7. Consent and declarations: how are they worded?
8. References: how many, how recent?

Using what you learn

Create a one-page outline that reflects the patterns you found. Then write your own report in your own words. Do not copy text or structure verbatim from other papers; borrowing wording is plagiarism, and each report must reflect your own case.

Illustrative example

Invented for teaching. A student reads three recent case reports from a dermatology journal and finds that each has an introduction of two paragraphs, a timeline table, one clinical image with caption and a discussion comparing 5–10 prior cases. She adopts a similar length and structure for her own report.

Common pitfalls

• Copying phrases from published papers.
• Choosing examples from unrelated journals with different norms.

Key takeaways

• Analyse structure, not just content.
• Write your own text and cite your own sources.

This page is general educational information about research methods. It is not medical, legal or regulatory advice; follow your institution's ethics board and your target journal's instructions.