Publication embargo

All material accepted for publication in any BMJ journal is under embargo until it is published online. This means that until then it shouldn’t be distributed to third parties or discussed with the media, with the exception of research distributed to journalists as part of an embargoed press release (either issued by BMJ or in consultation with BMJ).

If the material forms part of a submission to a government body or public enquiry before publication, authors should notify the journal at the point of acceptance and ensure that recipients are aware that an embargo is in force.

Authors whose research has been presented at a scientific meeting are of course still able to publish in any of our journals, but we ask that the media is not provided with any additional information prior to publication of the full article in the journal because it is important that journalists and readers have access to the full peer reviewed version of record. Prior presentation of the work at a conference should be acknowledged in the manuscript and any published conference abstract(s) should be cited.
Please see BMJ’s policy on redundant and duplicate publication for further details

If your article is selected for press release by BMJ, we ask that you make us aware if it has been published as a preprint and/or has already been publicised in any way, including on social media. Extensive media coverage prior to formal publication in a journal may mean that the article is not suitable for press release by BMJ.