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To Publish or Not to Publish?
To Publish or Not to Publish?
1. Fugger EF: Clinical status of human embryo cryopreserva-
To the Editor: It is with some surprise that we read the article by Fugger 1 concerning the clinical status of human embryo cryopreservation in the United States of America. Our group received a letter and questionnaire from Dr. Fugger in November, 1988 to which we responded in January, 1989. Nowhere in his letter did Dr. Fugger indicate that the results of his survey would be used for subsequent publication in Fertility and Sterility. Although he indicates in his paper that he submitted his questionnaire to The American Fertility Society, he did not state this in his circular letter to us. In his letter, he says that he had been asked by the Reproductive Council of the American Association of Tissue Banks to present information on the clinical status of frozen embryos at a combined workshop with the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) and that this was the purpose of the questionnaire. Although we did not object to providing the requested information, we strongly object to the subsequent publication of the obtained data as it appeared in Fertility and Sterility. Our reasons for objection are twofold. First, there was no indication that the gathered data would subsequently appear as a publication in a refereed journal. Second, the occurrence of such surveys and their publication, in our opinion, uses valuable space in refereed journals and in circumstances in which other more official agencies already carry out such undertakings. We refer of course to the survey of the National In Vitro Fertilization-Embryo Transfer (IVF-ET) Registry undertaken by Medical Research International and SART. In conclusion, we found the information presented in the publication interesting, but we suspect that some member institutes of SART did not respond because of their consideration that the N ational IVF-ET Registry had already established themselves as the official body to conduct such surveys. We will certainly consider closely any future requests for data by individuals other than SART before we respond.
Patrick Quinn, Ph.D. Richard P. Marrs, M.D. Bronte A. Stone, Ph.D. Institute for Reproductive Research The Hospital of the Good Samaritan Los Angeles, California January 16, 1990 952
REFERENCES
Letters-to-the-editor
tion in the United States of America. Fertil Steril 52:986, 1989
Reply of the Author: The data contained in the article concerning the clinical status of human embryo cryopreservation 1 was obtained from questionnaires screened and approved by The American Fertility Society, mailed to all members of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART), and returned anonymously for compilation and presentation at a joint meeting of the American Association of Tissue Banks and SART. Although the original objective of the questionnaire did not include publication, the response after the presentation of the data from individuals representing both groups strongly indicated.the information would be of use to others and worthy of publication. The letter accompanying the questionnaire did not state that the information would not be used for subsequent publication. The editor and reviewers of Fertility and Sterility subsequently made the judgment that this article was worthy to be accepted for publication in their refereed journal. The surveys of the National In Vitro Fertilization-Embryo Transfer Registry by Medical Research International (MRI) and SART represent other summary reports published in Fertility and Sterility. The reports by MRI and SART provide data presented for a 1-year period of time, whereas our report presented cumulative information from 1983 through 1988. Our article primarily presented data on laboratory procedures and embryonic stages of development at the time of cryopreservation in relation to embryo survival, and such information has not previously been reported cumulatively for this specific population and time period.
Edward F. Fugger, Ph.D. The Genetics and IVF Institute and Fairfax Cryobank Fairfax, Virginia February 5, 1990 REFERENCES 1. Fugger EF: Clinical status of human embryo cryopreserva-
tion in the United States of America. Fertil Steril 52:986, 1989
Fertility and Sterility
1. Fugger EF: Clinical status of human embryo cryopreserva-
To the Editor: It is with some surprise that we read the article by Fugger 1 concerning the clinical status of human embryo cryopreservation in the United States of America. Our group received a letter and questionnaire from Dr. Fugger in November, 1988 to which we responded in January, 1989. Nowhere in his letter did Dr. Fugger indicate that the results of his survey would be used for subsequent publication in Fertility and Sterility. Although he indicates in his paper that he submitted his questionnaire to The American Fertility Society, he did not state this in his circular letter to us. In his letter, he says that he had been asked by the Reproductive Council of the American Association of Tissue Banks to present information on the clinical status of frozen embryos at a combined workshop with the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) and that this was the purpose of the questionnaire. Although we did not object to providing the requested information, we strongly object to the subsequent publication of the obtained data as it appeared in Fertility and Sterility. Our reasons for objection are twofold. First, there was no indication that the gathered data would subsequently appear as a publication in a refereed journal. Second, the occurrence of such surveys and their publication, in our opinion, uses valuable space in refereed journals and in circumstances in which other more official agencies already carry out such undertakings. We refer of course to the survey of the National In Vitro Fertilization-Embryo Transfer (IVF-ET) Registry undertaken by Medical Research International and SART. In conclusion, we found the information presented in the publication interesting, but we suspect that some member institutes of SART did not respond because of their consideration that the N ational IVF-ET Registry had already established themselves as the official body to conduct such surveys. We will certainly consider closely any future requests for data by individuals other than SART before we respond.
Patrick Quinn, Ph.D. Richard P. Marrs, M.D. Bronte A. Stone, Ph.D. Institute for Reproductive Research The Hospital of the Good Samaritan Los Angeles, California January 16, 1990 952
REFERENCES
Letters-to-the-editor
tion in the United States of America. Fertil Steril 52:986, 1989
Reply of the Author: The data contained in the article concerning the clinical status of human embryo cryopreservation 1 was obtained from questionnaires screened and approved by The American Fertility Society, mailed to all members of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART), and returned anonymously for compilation and presentation at a joint meeting of the American Association of Tissue Banks and SART. Although the original objective of the questionnaire did not include publication, the response after the presentation of the data from individuals representing both groups strongly indicated.the information would be of use to others and worthy of publication. The letter accompanying the questionnaire did not state that the information would not be used for subsequent publication. The editor and reviewers of Fertility and Sterility subsequently made the judgment that this article was worthy to be accepted for publication in their refereed journal. The surveys of the National In Vitro Fertilization-Embryo Transfer Registry by Medical Research International (MRI) and SART represent other summary reports published in Fertility and Sterility. The reports by MRI and SART provide data presented for a 1-year period of time, whereas our report presented cumulative information from 1983 through 1988. Our article primarily presented data on laboratory procedures and embryonic stages of development at the time of cryopreservation in relation to embryo survival, and such information has not previously been reported cumulatively for this specific population and time period.
Edward F. Fugger, Ph.D. The Genetics and IVF Institute and Fairfax Cryobank Fairfax, Virginia February 5, 1990 REFERENCES 1. Fugger EF: Clinical status of human embryo cryopreserva-
tion in the United States of America. Fertil Steril 52:986, 1989
Fertility and Sterility