I have sometimes noticed a similar bug in LR 4.x, but in a less dangerous situation, so I never reported it.
I have found that sometimes in the print module, if I have printed a few prints and then decide to print some different ones, making a new selection in the film strip does NOT get understood by the print module. Often, the previous set of images is still selected in the Print module, while a contradictory set is selected in the filmstrip.
Since I always loop through the print previews before printing, this has never caused me to lose an image. But I've never played with the Publish module.
In any case, I hope they fix it soon.
Eric M.