Uniform requirements for medical journals - An idea whose time has come?

Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals have been developed by the International Committee of Medical Journal editors. Authors are an important part of the journal but their perspective is often ignored. Certain journals from developing countries have problems with manuscript submission, review and publication process. Uniform requirements for medical journals to deal with manuscripts are urgently required. The authors put forward a reasonable time frame for various stages in the publishing process and discuss methods in which journals from developing countries can streamline and expedite the publication process.