Author Guidelines

Author Guidelines

These guidelines are in accordance with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals. (The complete document is available at www.icmje.org.) 
The international medical journal – Academic Medical Journal publishes peer-reviewed articles on all aspects of medical sciences, including original articles, review articles, case reports, commentaries, editorials, letters to the editor, clinical trials, and surgical techniques in various medical disciplines.

Original article
Papers reporting the results of original research are limited to 5000 words. Required subheadings include abstract, introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, conclusion and references. A structured abstract of no more than 250 words is required.

Review article
A review article should be limited to 6000 words. We consider general reviews that summarize current understandings, research on a topic, integrating recent advances with accepted principles and practice, or summarizing and analyzing consensus view of issues in practice.

Review articles may be published only upon invitation from the Editors.

Case reports and case series
Articles should describe new clinical phenomena or novel treatment approaches, provide preliminary documentation of treatment efficacy, and promote evidence-based practice. Case reports must be structured as follows: Introduction (explaining the importance of the case), Case Description (providing all relevant information), and Conclusions (describing the detailed outcome of the report). Article should be limited to 3000 words.

Commentaries
Articles should be limited to 2000 words. Commentaries are thoughtful discussions of current research topics. They are short, narrowly focused articles that are usually written by authors upon invitation from the editorial office. Unsolicited commentaries are also considered.

Editorials
Articles should be limited to 2000 words. Academic Medical Journal considers editorials from invited authors. Editorials provide commentary on a previously published article in the journal or on current research trends.

Letter to the editor
We invite letters relating or responding to items recently published in the journal. A letter to the editor should not exceed 450 words.

Clinical trial
Articles should be limited to 3000 words. The paper should outline any research project that prospectively assigns human participants to intervention or comparison groups in order to study the cause-and-effect relationship between an intervention and a health outcome. A structured abstract is required, and trial registration information, such as the name of the registry, the registration number, and the URL, must be provided.

Surgical techniques
Articles should describe innovative surgical techniques, including new operative procedures or improvements to existing procedures. Authors may include images, which will be published in the article. If a video demonstrating the described surgical technique is to be included, it will be published as online-only supplementary material. Articles should be limited to 3000 words.

Manuscript
All manuscripts must be accompanied by a cover letter. This is a letter addressed to the Editor-in-Chief in which the corresponding author states that he or she wishes to submit the manuscript to Academic Medical Journal for consideration, that there is no conflict of interest, and that all authors have read and approved the manuscript being submitted.

Copyright Notice

All articles published in the Academic Medical Journal are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication. This license allows anyone to copy, redistribute, remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially, provided the original work is properly cited.

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that the work is original, has not been previously published, and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, except for conference abstracts of no more than 400 words.

Authors retain copyright and full publishing rights under the CC BY 4.0 license. This license allows unrestricted use, sharing, adaptation, and distribution with proper attribution. All articles are published under this license.

Privacy Statement
The names and email addresses entered on this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party. For more details, please refer to our full privacy statement.

Ensure that the following items are present:

  • One author designated as corresponding author
  • E-mail address
  • Full postal address
  • Telephone and fax numbers
  • All necessary files have been uploaded
  • Keywords
  • All figure captions
  • All tables and illustrations (including title, description, and footnotes)
  • The manuscript has undergone English language checking and correction
  • The manuscript has been spell-checked
  • References are in the correct format
  • All references in the reference list are cited in the text and vice versa
  • Non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential, they must be defined at their first mention
  • Permission has been obtained for the use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Web)

The text should be in single-column Word format. Do not use the word processor’s options to justify text or to hyphenate words.

Tables should be created in Word. Do not import the tables and figures into the text file. Indicate their approximate locations directly in the text of the manuscript. Tables and figures should be placed on separate pages at the end of the manuscript.

Title page

  • The title should be clear and descriptive and should not exceed 85 characters, including spaces. Abbreviations are not allowed in the title of the manuscript.
  • Authorship should be assumed only by those coworkers who have contributed to the work and its report. Colleagues who have otherwise assisted or collaborated should be recognized in the Acknowledgements section. For more information about authorship and contribution, please refer to publication ethics.
  • Authors’ names are listed in bibliographic form (surname followed by initials). That is, the surname and one or two initials.
  • Complete postal addresses of affiliations.
  • Full telephone number and e-mail address of the corresponding author.
  • Present addresses of authors, if applicable.
  • Complete correspondence address (including postal code) and e-mail address to which the proofs should be sent.
  • Grant support.
  • Statement that there is no conflict of interest.

Abstract
The abstract should contain no more than 250 words.

For original articles, the abstract should be structured (i.e., divided into the sections Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Conclusion).

Abstracts should briefly describe the problem addressed in the study, how the study was performed and which measurements were carried out, the most relevant results, and what the authors conclude from the results. An abstract is presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. Non-standard abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential, they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.

Keywords
A list of 3–6 words or short phrases should be included after the abstract for indexing purposes. Use terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) of the Index Medicus/National Library of Medicine.

Arrangement of the article

Introduction
State the objectives of the work and provide adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature survey or a summary of the results.

Materials and Methods
Provide sufficient detail to allow the work to be reproduced. Methods already published should be indicated by a reference; only relevant modifications should be described. You must include a sentence stating that informed consent was obtained from the study participants and/or that the institution’s ethics committee approved the study.

Results
Results should be presented concisely and precisely. Do not present the same information in both tables and figures.

Discussion
The discussion should relate directly to the study being reported. Do not include a general review of the topic. A concise discussion should relate only to the main results and their comparison with previously published studies.

Conclusion
Conclusions should be presented in a separate section following the Discussion. They must be clear, easy to understand, and supported by the results of the study. This section is not required for review articles.

References

References should be cited in the text by number and numbered in the order in which they are cited. The reference list should be double-spaced and placed at the end of the text, following the sample formats given below.

For abbreviations of journal names, refer to the List of Journals Indexed in Index Medicus.

Provide all author names when there are fewer than seven; when there are seven or more, list the first six followed by et al. Provide article titles and inclusive page numbers. The author is responsible for the accuracy of the reference data.

The recommended style for references is that of Index Medicus/NLM (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/policy/cit_format.html).

References should be written as follows:

Journal papers: surnames and initials of the first six authors, followed by et al.; full title of the paper; journal abbreviation (according to Index Medicus); year of publication; volume (in Arabic numerals); first and last page; DOI.

  1. Olabarria M, Goldman JE. Disorders of astrocytes: Alexander disease as a model. Annu Rev Pathol. 2017;12:131-52. doi: 10.1146/annurev-pathol-052016-100218.

Books and monographs: surnames and initials of all authors; full title; edition; place of publication; publisher; year.

  1. Pollack RS. Tumor surgery of the head and neck. Basel: Karger; 1975.
  2. Standring S, editor. Gray’s anatomy. 41st ed. Amsterdam: Elsevier; 2015.

Chapter of a book:

  1. Kutt H, Pippenberg CE, et al. Plasma clearance of nor-methsuximide in a uremic patient. In: Levy RH, Pitlick WH, Meijer J, editors. Metabolism of antiepileptic drugs. New York: Raven Press; 1984. p. 223-6.

Book in a series:

  1. Usdin E, Asberg M, Bertilsson L, editors. Frontiers in biochemical and pharmacological research in depression. New York: Raven Press; 1984. (Advances in biochemical psychopharmacology; vol. 39).

Websites:
Author/Organisation. Title of site [Internet]. Place of publication: Publisher; [updated year month day; cited year month day]. Available from: URL.

  1. Foley KM, Gelband H, editors. Improving palliative care for cancer [Internet]. Washington: National Academy Press; 2001 [cited 2002 Jul 9]. Available from: https://www.nap.edu/catalog/10149/improving-palliative-care-for-cancer
  2. Kanneganti P, Harris JD, Brophy RH, Carey JL, Lattermann C, Flanigan DC. The effect of smoking on ligament and cartilage surgery in the knee: a systematic review. Am J Sports Med [Internet]. 2012 Dec [cited 2019 Feb 19];40(12):2872-8. Available from: http://ajs.sagepub.com/content/40/12/2872. doi: 10.1177/0363546512458223.

Please note that student atlases and textbooks commonly used in teaching should not be cited.

References to articles that have been accepted for publication may be cited as “in press”, whereas manuscripts that are still in preparation or have been submitted for publication should be referred to as “unpublished data”.

Structured abstract
A structured abstract should be provided on a separate page, with no more than 250 words, presenting essential data in four paragraphs introduced by separate headings in the following order: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Conclusion. All data in the structured abstract must also be present in the submitted text or tables. Three to six keywords should be added. Terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) should be used.

Condensed abstract (for the table of contents)
A condensed abstract of no more than 50 words should be provided for the expanded table of contents, stressing clinical implications. Do not include data that are not present in the text or tables.

Acknowledgement section
This section should acknowledge colleagues who have assisted or collaborated in the study but are not listed on the title page. It should also include details on sponsorship and possible conflicts of interest.

Figures and photographs
Figures and photographs of good quality should be submitted online as separate files. Please use lettering that remains clearly readable even after reduction to about 50%. A legend should be provided for every figure or photograph. Authors wishing to use illustrations that have already been published must first obtain permission from the author and the publisher and/or copyright holders, and must give a precise reference to the original work. This permission must include the right to publish in electronic media.

Tables
Tables should be created in Word. Number tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text. The text should include references to all tables. Each table should occupy a separate page of the manuscript. Tables should never be included in the text. Each table should have a brief and self-explanatory title, placed above the table. Place footnotes below the table body and indicate each footnote with a superscript lowercase letter. Be sparing in the use of tables and ensure that the data presented in tables do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article. All abbreviations should be explained. Do not provide duplicate information in tables and figures.

Illustrations

  • All illustrations should be submitted as separate files.
  • Illustrations created in Word should be sent as Word files.
  • Illustrations created in CorelDraw or Illustrator should be sent in EPS format.
  • Photographs should be sent in TIFF or JPG format, always with minimal compression.
  • Illustrations should be numbered according to their sequence in the text. Each illustration should be referred to in the text.
  • Illustrations should be of a size that allows a reduction of 50%.
  • Lettering should be large enough to allow a reduction of 50% without becoming illegible. Use the same type of lettering throughout and follow the style of the manuscript.
  • Each illustration should be placed on a separate sheet of the manuscript.
  • Explanations should be given in the figure legend(s).
  • Photographs are acceptable only if they have good contrast and intensity.

Figure legends should be typed on separate pages, and figure numbers must follow their first mention in the text.

Drug names
Generic names should be used. Trade names may be given in parentheses at first mention, and generic names should be used thereafter.

Abbreviations
Non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided. If they are essential, they must be defined at first mention. For standard abbreviations, follow the ICMJE Recommendations or consult Scientific Style and Format: The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers or other standard sources.

Please note the following conventions

  • Word tables: Provide tables as a separate file (do not place them in the text).
  • Excel graphs: Provide graphs as an Excel file (do not place them in the text).
  • Word graphs: Provide graphs as a separate Word file (do not place them in the text).
  • Table and graph legends should be provided separately at the end of the text.
  • Graphs printed on laser or inkjet printers cannot serve as templates. Always provide the original electronic files.
  • Figures (line art): Provide the original or a scan. Scan at 600-800 dpi, set to black and white (B/W) or line art.
  • Figures (black-and-white photographs): Provide a high-quality original or a scan at 350 dpi.
  • Figures (colour photographs): Provide a high-quality original or a scan at 350 dpi.
  • Figures from a digital camera should not be placed in the text. Provide them in TIFF or JPG format with minimal compression.
  • Figures scanned at 72 or 96 dpi are not suitable for print.
  • As a rule, do not place scans in the text. Always provide the original figures in TIFF or JPG format with minimal compression. Placing a scan in a Word document causes a loss of quality.
  • Figure legends should be provided as a separate text file.
  • Do not place figures in PowerPoint. This application is intended for presentations and cannot be used as a template for print.

We will not publish accepted manuscripts that do not meet our requirements for the formal processing of manuscripts.

Author Statement

Proofs
One set of proofs will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author at the address given on the title page of the manuscript. Only typesetter’s errors may be corrected; no changes to, or additions to, the edited manuscript will be allowed. Academic Medical Journal will do everything possible to ensure that your article is corrected and published as quickly and accurately as possible. Therefore, it is important that all of your corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Subsequent corrections will not be possible, so please ensure that your first submission is complete. Proofs must be returned within 2 days; late return may delay publication. Please check the text, tables, legends, and references carefully.