COVID-19 preprints constituted almost two thirds of the uploaded articles on medRxiv, whilst the fraction of COVID-19 submission to JIM was one third. Both the acceptance rate for COVID-19 manuscripts in the JIM data, and the rate of conversion from preprint to scientific publication of the COVID-19 preprints on medRxiv could be considered as low. We found that the increase in non-COVID-19 preprints has accelerated during the course of the pandemic, indicating that the COVID-19 preprints, and the media coverage thereof, have generated excess interest in posting other medical science preprints. The scientific community has reacted swiftly to the medical challenges generated by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic [1]. [Extracted from the article]