General information
The Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT) is an international
peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the advancement of the science of manipulative and physiological therapeutics and chiropractic health
care principles and practice. Submissions must be original work, not previously published, and not currently under consideration for
publication in another medium, including both paper and electronic formats. The JMPT does not publish articles containing material
that has been reported at length elsewhere. The journal follows the standards as set forth in the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts
(www.icmje.org).
MANUSCRIPT CATEGORIES
Manuscripts should fit
into one of the following categories (text word limit does not include abstract, tables, or reference word count):
Observational
and experimental investigations
Reports of new research findings. These studies may include investigations into the improvement
of health factors, causal aspects of disease, and the establishment of clinical efficacies of related diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
These types of studies may include: clinical trials, intervention studies, cohort studies, case-control studies, observational studies,
cost-effectiveness analyses, epidemiologic evaluations, and studies of diagnostic tests. These reports should follow current and relevant
guidelines (eg, CONSORT, MOOSE, QUOROM, STARD, TREND, etc.) (text word limit, approximately 4000 words)
Systematic reviews
and meta-analyses
Assessments of current knowledge of a particular subject of interest that synthesize evidence relevant
to well-defined questions about diagnosis, prognosis, or therapy with emphasis on better correlation, the demonstration of ambiguities,
and the delineation of areas that may constitute hypotheses for further study. (text word limit, approximately 4000 words)
Clinical
guidelines
Succinct, informative, summaries of official or consensus positions on issues related to health care delivery,
clinical practice, or public policy. (text word limit, approximately 2000 words)
Technical reports
Reporting
and evaluation of new or improved equipment, procedures, or the critical evaluation of old equipment or procedures that have not previously
been critically evaluated. (text word limit, approximately 2000 words)
Case series
Case series are retrospective
comparative assessments of the diagnosis and treatment of several cases of a similar condition. (text word limit, approximately 1500
words)
Letters to the editor
Communications that are directed specifically to the editor that add to the information
base or clarify a deficiency in paper recently published in the JMPT (must be within the last 2 months) and include relevant
references to substantiate comments. No unidentified letters are accepted for publication. All letters are subject to editing and abridgement.
If a letter is accepted for publication, a blinded copy will be sent to the author of the article who will have an opportunity to provide
a response and new information that will be considered for publication along with the letter. Direct communication between the writer
of a letter and the author of an article should be avoided, because in the interest of scientific objectivity differences of opinion
are best handled by a third party—the editor—who can serve as an arbitrator if there is a dispute, thus avoiding unnecessary
irritations to either party. Also, if deficiencies exist in an article published in the JMPT, all readers (and the scientific
community in general) have a right to be informed. For more information about letters to the editor, please read this editorial. (text
word limit, 500 words maximum, reference limit 8)
(For more information, read this article on letters to the editor)
EDITORIAL POLICIES
Authorship
All authors
of papers submitted to JMPT must have an intellectual stake in the material presented for publication and must be able to answer
for the content of the entire work. Authors must be able to certify participation in the work, vouch for its validity, acknowledge reviewing
and approving the final version of the paper, acknowledge that the work has not been previously published elsewhere, and be able to produce
raw data if requested by the editor. All authors are required to complete and submit an authorship copyright form.
As stated in
the Uniform Requirements (www.icmje.org), credit for authorship requires all
3 of the following 1) substantial contributions to conception and design, or acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data;
2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and 3) final approval of the version to be published.
Authors should meet conditions 1, 2, and 3. Each author must sign a statement attesting that he or she fulfills the authorship criteria
of the Uniform Requirements and is included on the copyright assignment form. Authors are required to designate their level of participation
of authorship on the authorship form. A change in authorship after submission must be signed by all authors and submitted to the editor
prior to being considered. (For more information, read this article on authorship)
Human subjects
The JMPT endorses the ICMJE guidelines and the Declaration of Helsinki.
All related conditions regarding the experimental use of human subjects and their informed consent apply. Studies that should go through
approval from an ethics review board/committee or IRB should be approved in advance. Information about IRB/ethics review board approval
should be included the Methods section of the paper. Manuscripts that report the results of experimental investigations with human subjects
must include a statement that informed consent was obtained (in writing, from the subject or legal guardian) after the procedure(s) had
been fully explained. (For more information, read this article on human
subjects)
Evidence of ethics/IRB approval should be submitted to the editor at the initial time of submission. When
applicable, a signed letter from the HIPAA compliance officer should be submitted. Fax (630) 839-1792 or email cjohnson@nuhs.edu.
Clinical trial registration
Clinical trials should be included in a clinical trial registry. (For more information,
read this article on trial
registries) The clinical trial registration number should be included in the methods section of the manuscript. Clinical
trials should be registered in a public trials registry at or before the onset of patient enrollment as a condition of consideration
for publication. This policy applies to clinical trials starting enrollment after July 1, 2005. For trials that began enrollment before
this date, registration should be completed by September 13, 2005, before considering the trial for publication. The ICMJE (www.icmje.org)
defines a clinical trial as a study that prospectively assigns human subjects to intervention or comparison groups to evaluate the cause-and-effect
relationship between an intervention and a health outcome. Trial registration numbers and the URLs for the registry should be included
in the cover letter at the time of submission. Authors may consider the following sites for registration:
-
www.centerwatch.com
www.clinicaltrials.gov
www.controlled-trials.com
www.nhmrc.gov.au/research/general/clincreg.htm
www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/index.asp
www.trialscentral.org
www.umin.ac.jp/ctr
http://actr.org.au
http://isrctn.org
Patient anonymity
It is the authors' responsibility to maintain appropriate records as well as protect patients' identity. Ethical and legal considerations require careful attention to the protection of the patient's anonymity in case reports and other publications. Identifying information such as names, initials, actual case numbers, and specific dates must be avoided; identifying information about a patient's personal history and characteristics should be disguised. Anonymity should be maintained for case reports regardless of the patient providing permission to publish. Photographs or artistic likenesses of subjects, patients, or models are publishable only with their written consent or the consent of legal guardian; the signed consent form, giving any special conditions, must accompany manuscript.
Case consent form
Case reports or case series must be accompanied by completed and signed patient consent to publish form(s). These forms may be emailed as a pdf or faxed. Fax (630) 839-1792 or email cjohnson@nuhs.edu. Authors should include a statement in the text, without divulging personal identifiers, that the patient(s) gave consent to have personal health information published.
HIPAA compliance
For more information about HIPAA as it relates to obtaining patient consent for publication, please refer to
http://privacyruleandresearch.nih.gov/faq.asp, the JMPT editorial
on HIPAA (For more information, read this article on HIPAA),
or your country's legal guidelines.
Conflict of interest
Authors - Each author is required to complete a conflict of interest form (created by the ICMJE) and submit this form at the time of initial submission. Conflict of interest exists when an author has financial or other interests that may influence his or her actions in regard to the authors' work, manuscript development, or decisions. Conflicts of interest that exist, or that are perceived to exist, for individual authors in connection with the content of the paper shall be disclosed to the JMPT at the time of submission. In addition to the form, any concerns or additional conflict of interest issues may be included in the cover letter to the editor. Authors must also disclose to the editor in the cover letter the conflicts of interest of any other person or entity involved with the paper (eg, non-author, contributor, funding body) In recognition that it may be difficult to judge material from authors where conflict of interests are concerned, authors should be ready to answer requests from the editor regarding potential conflicts of interest. The editor makes the final determination concerning the extent of information included in the published paper.
It is expected that authors are truthful when declaring conflicts on their submission materials. An editor's role is not to be policeman, so the burden is upon the author to properly declare COI. If an author did not accurately and completely declare their interests upon submission, and it is discovered later, the editor will follow up with an ethics investigation. The results may include rejection or retraction of the paper, prevention of future submissions, and notification of ethical misconduct to the proper authorities.
Editorial staff and Peer Reviewers - It is expected that people involved with handling manuscripts for the journal will properly disclose their financial and professional interests that may be be viewed as potential conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from any actions in which their conflicts of interest will hamper their judgment or actions. Peer reviewers should inform the editor if they feel they are not able to properly peer review a manuscript and recuse themselves from reviewing that manuscript. Editorial staff should disclose information that readers may perceive might influence decisions in journal editing. Disclosure statements about potential conflicts of interest for the journal staff should be published regularly. Please refer to ICMJE website for more information on COI. (For more information, read this article about conflict of interest).
Funding sources
Sources of financial support of the study, such as grants, funding sources, equipment, and supplies, should be clearly stated in the title page form. The role of funding organizations, if any, in the conduct of the study should be described in the Methods section of the manuscript. If the study is funded directly by an NIH grant, it is the corresponding author's responsibility to inform the editor and mark this information on the copyright form at the time of submission.
Copyright of journal contents
Material published in the JMPT is covered by copyright. No content published by the JMPT (either in print or electronic) may be stored or presented in other locations such as on another private website, an organization's site, or displayed or reproduced by any other means, without the express permission of the copyright holder.
Redundant or duplicate publication Manuscripts must be submitted to only one journal at a time and published in only one journal. The JMPT does not publish articles containing material that has been reported at length elsewhere. The corresponding author must include in the cover letter a statement to the editor about all submissions and previous materials that might be considered to be redundant or duplicate publication of similar work, including if the manuscript includes materials on which the authors have published a previous report or have submitted similar or related work to another publication. Copies of the related material may be requested by the editor in order to assist with the editorial decision of the paper.
If redundant or duplicate publication is attempted or occurs without proper disclosure to the editor, editorial action will be taken as follows. The results may include rejection or retraction of the paper, prevention of future submissions, and notification of ethical misconduct to the proper authorities. If it is confirmed that a paper is a duplicate or redundant publication and is discovered in the prepublication phase, the paper will be rejected, even if an accept notice has been distributed previously to the authors. If duplicate or redundant publication is confirmed after publication, the paper will be retracted and the appropriate boards/institutions notified.
For more information about redundant or duplicate publication, please read the editorial on this topic (For more information, read this article on duplicate publication).
Non-compliance with author instructions
Authors who do not comply with the items set forth in these instructions may have the submission returned, rejected, or brought to higher authorities, such as ethics, licensing, or institutional boards for further review at the editor's discretion.
EDITORIAL PROCESS
Pre-peer review, and internal review by editors
To insure that only relevant and appropriate papers are sent to peer review, submitted manuscripts are pre-reviewed for relevance, appropriate submission format, and basic quality before sending out to peer review. Reasons for early rejection may include: the submission does not meet the requirements as stated in the instructions for authors, the work is of poor quality, and/or the topic is not relevant to the mission of journal.
The editorial staff reads each manuscript and then decides whether to send the paper to outside reviewers. If a submission is rejected without external review, the author will typically be notified electronically within 2 to 3 weeks of receipt. Over 80% of submitted papers are sent to external peer review, which is usually made up of at least 2 reviewers, but may be more. (for more information read this article about review)
Review process
The JMPT uses double-blind peer review methods (author and reviewer are blinded). The journal staff will do their best to support blinded review methods, however due to the special nature of the topics published, we cannot guarantee that reviewers or authors may be able to guess the identity of each other.
All manuscripts are subject to blind (without author or institutional identification) critical review by experts in the related field to assist the editor in determining appropriateness to JMPT objectives, originality, validity, importance of content, substantiation of conclusions, and possible need for improvement. Manuscripts are considered privileged communications and should not be retained or duplicated during the review process. Reviewers' comments may be returned with the manuscript if rejected or if strong recommendations for improvement are made. All reviewers remain anonymous. (for more information read this article on the review process)
Rapid review
Rapid review speeds up the process of peer review and publication. Priority will be given to large clinical trials and meta-analysis. Only manuscripts that are of very high quality that have findings likely to directly influence clinical practice immediately will be considered.
Authors who feel that their research warrants rapid review should email the editor and submit justification regarding the merits of the paper to substantiate its inclusion for rapid review. The editor will make the final decision regarding the suitability of a submission for rapid review and publication. If a paper is not deemed appropriate by the editor for rapid review, the manuscript may still be submitted through the regular submission process and timeline.
If a manuscript is accepted for rapid review, it will then be handled through an expedited peer review process for decision. The results may include acceptance, major revision, minor revision, or rejection. Inclusion in the rapid review process guarantees neither acceptance of the paper nor promise of rapid publication if accepted. Each decision and paper review will be done separately. All papers that are selected for rapid review will be processed through peer review. (for more information on this topic, please read this article on rapid review)
The expedited review process will take approximately 15 business days. Authors will be notified about revision no later than 5 weeks after the manuscript is initially received. If revision is requested, authors of a rapid review submission should return a revised manuscript within 2 weeks of notification. At this time, a decision will be made for acceptance or rejection. If the manuscript is accepted, it will be scheduled immediately for publication in the next available issue.
Criteria for editorial decisions
The JMPT can publish only a portion of all papers submitted each year. Papers are selected based on quality and strength of the paper in regard to scientific merit and the potential impact on improving patient care.
Revisions, rejections, and resubmissions
Processing of a manuscript for peer review does not imply acceptance to publish, even though the paper may be found to be within JMPT editorial objectives. Submissions may receive one of 5 responses from the editor: 1) incomplete or not ready for submission, 2) major revision, 3) minor revision, 4) accept, or 5) reject. Aside from rejection for uncorrectable faults, a well-compiled manuscript may also be rejected because it adds little new information to work that was previously published in the literature or addresses a new topic that deserves more in-depth reporting. In these cases, the editor may provide the author of a rejected manuscript recommendations that may be helpful for submission elsewhere.
If the authors have been given the opportunity by the editor to make specific changes to a manuscript and return it for further consideration, this is considered a "revision." The manuscript will have the same manuscript number and may be sent out to the same or different reviewers, depending on the needs of the revision. A request for revision does not imply that the manuscript will be accepted. Manuscripts that are revised and returned may still be rejected.
If the authors have received a rejection decision but wish the editor to reconsider the decision, this is considered a "resubmission." A new file will be created, and the paper will receive a new manuscript number. The cover letter must explain that the paper is being resubmitted and substantiated with explanations for why the paper should be allowed to be resubmitted.
Acceptance for publication
Once a manuscript has been accepted, the authors should not distribute content relating to the article while it is being prepared for publication. It is permissible at this time to refer to this manuscript as "accepted for publication" in a forthcoming issue of JMPT; however, it is requested that no further details of the paper, or the research on which it may have been based, be given out in consideration that abridged or inexact versions of research or scholarly work can be misleading, or even hazardous where clinical procedures are involved.
Authors may use Elsevier's Author Gateway (
http://authors.elsevier.com) to track accepted articles and set up e-mail
alerts to inform you of when an article's status has changed. Answers to questions arising after acceptance of an article, especially
those relating to proofs, are provided after registration of an article for publication.
Post-acceptance copy editing
All manuscripts accepted for publication are subject to editing and revision as may be necessary to ensure clarity, completeness, conciseness, correct usage, and conformance to approved style. Almost all papers that are accepted require some editorial revision before publication. Authors will have the opportunity to review revisions made during the copy editing process during the reviewing of the proofs. Editors will work with authors to arrive at agreement when authors do not find the revisions acceptable, but the JMPT reserves the right to refrain from publishing a manuscript if discussion with the author fails to reach a solution that satisfies the editors.
Publication scheduling of accepted papers and proofs
Authors will be notified when they can expect to receive proofs by email. Authors who cannot examine email proofs by the deadline (48 hours of receipt) should email the editor to designate a colleague who will review proofs.
JMPT e-papers
Starting with the January 2002 issue, the JMPT initiated an electronic paper section in the journal. Electronic papers have their abstract published in the print version of the journal, while the full-text version of the paper is included on the JMPT web site (www.jmptonline.org). While the editor will attempt to honor requests to publish or not publish a paper as an E-paper, the editor reserves the right to make a final decision as to whether a given paper will be published as an E-paper. It is important to note that electronic publication includes all the same rights and privileges as print publication, including inclusion in indexing agency databases.
Funding sources and NIH funded studies
Statements about funding sources and conflicts of interests should be included in the title page form. If there were no funding sources or identified conflicts of interest to declare, then this should be clearly stated.
The JMPT is compliant with the open access NIH publication policy and will deposit the final version of the published paper to PubMedCentral (PMC) within 12 months of final publication. It is the corresponding author's responsibility to inform the editor in both the cover letter and the copyright form that the study was directly funded by an NIH grant.
Reprints and copies
Authors of papers published in the JMPT are encouraged to make reprints available to interested members of the scientific, academic, and clinical communities so that the inherent knowledge may be more widely disseminated; a reprint order form will be provided with the proofs to facilitate ordering quantity reprints. One complimentary copy of the JMPT issue in which an author's work appears will be provided at no charge to the corresponding author. Additional copies, if desired, must be ordered at regular cost directly from the publisher. Authors are responsible for payment of reprints or additional copies.
Reproductions
The entire content of the JMPT is protected by copyright, and no part may be reproduced (outside of the fair use stipulation of Public Law 94-553) by any means without prior permission from the editor or publisher in writing. In particular, this policy applies to the reprinting of an original article in print or in electronic format, in another publication and the use of any illustrations or text to create a new work.
Sponsored Access
For those authors who wish to make their article open access, the JMPT offers authors the option to sponsor non-subscriber access to individual articles. The charge for article sponsorship is $3,000. This charge is necessary to offset publishing costs - from managing article submission and peer review, to typesetting, tagging and indexing of articles, hosting articles on dedicated servers, supporting sales and marketing costs to ensure global dissemination via ScienceDirect, and permanently preserving the published journal article. The fee excludes taxes and other potential author fees such as color charges which are additional.
Authors may select this option after receiving notification that their article has been accepted for publication. This prevents a potential conflict of interest where a journal would have a financial incentive to accept an article.
Authors who have had their article accepted and who wish to sponsor their article to make it available to non-subscribers should complete and submit the order form. Note, the fee is waived with NIH funded articles.
SUBMISSION INFORMATION
For more information about submission requirement, please read the following article.
Manuscript preparation and submission
As of 01 May 2005, all manuscripts must be submitted through the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics online submission and review Web site (
http://ees.elsevier.com/JMPT).
Authors may send queries concerning the submission process, manuscript status, or journal procedures to the Editorial Office. cjohnson@nuhs.edu
Once you have uploaded your submission files, the system automatically generates an electronic (PDF) proof for your review. All correspondence, including the Editor's decision and request for revisions, will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author.
Revised manuscripts should be accompanied by an additional Word file with responses to all editor requests and reviewers' comments. This file should contain an itemized list addressing each of the revision requests and demonstrate how these have been addressed in the manuscript. The preferred order of files is as follows: cover letter, response to reviews (revised manuscripts only), manuscript file(s), figure(s).
Authors who are unable to provide an electronic version or have other circumstances that prevent online submission must contact the Editorial Office prior to submission to discuss alternate options. The Publisher and Editors regret that they are not able to consider submissions that do not follow these procedures.
Materials due at initial submission
All materials associated with the manuscript are due at the time of initial submission. These include: cover letter, title page form, manuscript files, assignment of copyright forms for all authors, conflict of interest forms for all authors, and any permission forms (eg, patient consent to publish forms, permission to have name printed in acknowledgements, permission to reprint table or figure, etc.). It is the corresponding author's responsibility to obtain these permissions and upload them to the website. In the event that the paper is rejected, the permissions and files associated with this manuscript will no longer be valid so that the authors may pursue publication elsewhere.
File requirements
Original source files, not PDF files, are required for submission. Files should be labeled with appropriate and descriptive file names (eg, SmithText.doc or Fig1.tif).
It is recommended that each file is no greater than 2MB are uploaded during the submissions process.
SUBMISSION COMPONENTS AND REQUIREMENTS
Submission check list
The following items should be ready before submitting to the JMPT website:
1. Cover letter file
2. Title page form file
3. Blinded manuscript Word file (does not include author name or other identifying information):
- a. structured abstract
b. body of manuscript
c. references
d. tables
4. Figures (separate JPEG files no bigger than 2 MB)
5. Signed assignment of copyright forms for each author
6. Completed conflict of interest form for each author
7. Permissions to publish, consent forms, permissions forms 1. Cover letter
The cover letter should explain why the paper should be published in the JMPT rather than elsewhere and if the submission is original and not currently under consideration for publication in another peer-reviewed medium. The cover letter should include a statement of intent to submit to the JMPT. The cover letter may also include any special information regarding the submission that may be helpful in its consideration for publication. If the study was funded by an NIH grant, this information should be included in the cover letter.
2. Title page
Please fill in title page form (click here) or obtain the title page form from the JMPT submission website. The title page form includes:
-
Article Title
MeSH key words
Provide approximately 4-6 MeSH indexing terms that will assist indexers in cross-indexing your article and that may be published with the abstract. These terms should come from the Index Medicus Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Running head
Include a maximum of 40 letters/ spaces.
Word count
Word count for text (excludes abstract, acknowledgments, figure legends, and references);
Word count for structured abstract
Word count for structured abstract (approx 250 words or less).
Practical Applications
Three to 5 short sentences that highlight findings of the study. These statements should relate directly to the study findings.
JMPT Highlights
Short description for the JMPT Highlights, approximately 2 sentences (40 words).
Human Subjects
If human subject data were used, state the name of the IRB/Ethics review board that reviewed this study in the Methods and here.
Clinical Trial Registry
If the study was a clinical trial, please include clinical trial registration number in the Methods and here.
Permission to Acknowledge
State the names of people who you are acknowledging and specifically how they contributed to the study. A signed letter of permission from each person and/or entity stating they give permission to the JMPT to print their name must be uploaded to the website at the initial time of submission.
Permission to reprint
If you are using any previously published figures or tables, please state here. A signed letter of permission from the copyright holder stating they give permission to the JMPT to reprint must be uploaded to the website at the initial time of submission.
Funding sources
State funding sources (grants, funding sources, equipment, and supplies). Include name and number of grant if available. Clearly state if study received direct NIH funding.
Conflicts of Interest
List potential conflict s of interest for all authors.
3. Blinded manuscript file
-
Manuscript format and style
Manuscripts must be prepared in accordance with the Declaration of Vancouver "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals" (available from the JMPT Editorial Office or from www.icmje.org). The manuscript should be in double-spaced format. Do not break any words (hyphenate) at the end of any line and do not insert hard page breaks. The journal follows AMA Style Guide (10th edition). For more information about submission requirement, please read the following article. Structured abstract
The structured abstract should be no more than 250 words. Structured abstracts are required for all original data reports, reviews of the literature, clinical guidelines, and case reports/series. The abstract should consist of 4 paragraphs, labeled: Objectives, Methods (include relevant information such as design, subjects/population, setting, statistical methods, etc), Results, and Conclusions.
Manuscript organization
The structured abstract should be no more than 250 words. Structured abstracts are required for all original data reports, reviews of the literature, clinical guidelines, and case reports/series. The abstract should consist of 4 paragraphs, labeled: Objectives, Methods (include relevant information such as design, subjects/population, setting, statistical methods, etc), Results, and Conclusions.
Introduction
The structured abstract should be no more than 250 words. Structured abstracts are required for all original data reports, reviews of the literature, clinical guidelines, and case reports/series. The abstract should consist of 4 paragraphs, labeled: Objectives, Methods (include relevant information such as design, subjects/population, setting, statistical methods, etc), Results, and Conclusions.
Methods
The selection and description of participants, technical information, and statistics used should be reported in this section. Describe the selection of the observational or experimental subjects (patients or experimental animals, including controls). Papers of a specific study design should follow current and relevant guidelines (e.g., CONSORT, MOOSE, QUOROM, STARD, TREND, etc.) and include appropriate materials in the text. Identify the methods, apparatus (manufacturer's name and address in parentheses) and procedures in sufficient detail to allow others to reproduce the work for comparison of results. Give references to establish methods, provide references and brief descriptions for methods that have been published but may not be well known, describe new or substantially modified methods and give reasons for using them and evaluate their limitations.
When reporting experiments with human subjects, indicate the procedures used in accordance with the ethical standards of the Committee on Human Experimentation of the institution in which the research was conducted and/or were done in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975. Clearly indicate the ethics review board or IRB that approved the study. When reporting experiments on animals, indicate whether the institution's or the National Research Council's guide for the care and use of laboratory animals was followed. Do not use patient names, initials, or hospital numbers or in any manner give information by which the individuals can be identified. The author may be requested to provide the editor documentation from the ethics board and methods used to review the work.
The source(s) of support in the form of funds, grants, equipment, or other real goods should be clearly stated in the Methods section.
Statistics
Describe the statistical methods in enough detail that would allow a knowledgeable reader with access to the original data to verify the results. Findings should include appropriate indicators of measurement error or uncertainty, such as confidence intervals.
Examples of statistical details that should be included in the methods section are: the eligibility of experimental subjects, details about randomization, methods for blinding, complications of treatment, numbers of observations, dropouts from a clinical trial, the statistical programs used. In the results section, state the statistical methods used to analyze the results. All statistical terms, abbreviations, and symbols should be defined.
Include numbers of observations and the statistical significance of the findings when appropriate. Detailed statistical analyses, mathematical derivations, and the like may sometimes be suitably presented in the form of one or more appendixes.
Results
Present your results in logical sequence within the text, tables, and figures. Do not repeat findings in multiple places (eg, do not include the same data in both text and tables). Emphasize or summarize only important observations, do not discuss findings in this section.
Discussion
The discussion should emphasize the important aspects of the study and include conclusions that follow from these observations. Do not repeat data presented in the Results section and do not include information or work that is not directly relevant to the study. State new hypotheses when indicated, but clearly label them as such. Statements that are unsupported, that generalize, or that over extrapolate the findings should not be included.
Conclusions that may be drawn from the study may be included in the discussion; however, they may be more appropriately presented in a separate section. The principal conclusions should be directly linked to the goals of the study. Unqualified statements and conclusions not supported by your data should not be included. Avoid claiming priority or referring to work that has not been completed or published. State new hypotheses when warranted but clearly label them as such. Recommendations (for further study, etc), when appropriate, may be included.
Limitations subsection
Place limitation subsection at the end of the Discussion section. List and discuss the limitations of the study, possible sources of bias, and any reasonable alternate explanations for the findings and interpretation for the study.
Acknowledgments
Acknowledge only those who have made substantive contributions to the study itself; this includes support personnel such as statistical or manuscript review consultants, but not subjects used in the study or clerical staff. Clearly state what each contributor has provided. Authors are responsible for obtaining the written permission (to be included at time of submission) that is required from persons, institutions, or businesses being acknowledged by name because readers may infer their endorsement of the data and conclusions.
References
Authors are responsible for accurate reference and citation information, especially accuracy of author names, journal titles, volume numbers, and page numbers. References should be numbered consecutively when they are first used in the text. Reference citation in the text should be in superscript format and after punctuation (eg, The quick fox jumped over the dog.1). References should be listed in numeric order (not alphabetically) following the text pages. The original citation number assigned to a reference should be reused each time the reference is cited in the text, regardless of its previous position in the text: do not assign it another number. References should not be included in abstracts. References that are only used in tables or figure legends should be numbered in the sequence established by the first use of the particular table or figure in the text.
Only references that provide support for a particular statement in the text, tables, and/or figures should be used. Reference or referring to unpublished work should be avoided. Excessive use of references should be avoided. Each reference should only be listed in the reference section once.
Authors are responsible to verify references against the original document and not from reading the abstract alone. Care should be taken to accurately represent the original work and not misconstrue the original meaning of the paper.
Unacceptable reference sources
Using only the abstract, referring to "unpublished observations" and "personal communications" should be avoided. Unpublished references (submitted but not accepted) should not be listed as references. Manuscripts that are accepted but not yet published may be included in the references with the designation "in press." The author should obtain written permission to cite these papers and may be requested by the editor to provide documentation to verify the paper was accepted for publication. For the most part, sources of information and reference support for a bioscientific paper should be limited to journals (rather than books) because that knowledge is generally considered more recent and (in the case of refereed journals) more accurate.
Reference style Reference style should be in accordance with that specified by the US National Library of Medicine. Specific examples of correct reference form for journal articles and other publications can be found at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html
The format for at typical journal article is as follows:
- 1. Last name of author(s) and their initials in capitals separated
by a space with a comma separating each author. (List all authors when 6 or fewer; when 7 or more, list only the first 6 and add et al.)
2. Title of article with first word capitalized and all other words in lower case, except names of persons, places, etc.
3. Name of journal, abbreviated according to Index Medicus http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/serials/lji.html ; year of publication
(followed by a semicolon); volume number (followed by a colon); and inclusive pages of article (with redundant number dropped, ie, 105-10).
Using Arabic numerals, number each table consecutively (in the order in which they were listed in the text in parentheses) and supply a brief title to appear at the top of the table above a horizontal line; place any necessary explanatory matter in footnotes at the bottom of the table below a horizontal line and identify with footnote symbols *,†, ‡, §, ||, ¶, #, **, ††, ‡‡, §§, etc.
Do not submit tables as photographs. Avoid the use of too many tables in relation to length of the text, as this may produce difficulties in layout of the pages. Avoid the use of tables that do not fit in the 'portrait' layout. Table contents and number of tables may be subject to editing.
Type legends for tables above each table. Identify each legend with Arabic numerals in the same manner and sequence as they were indicated in the text in parentheses (eg, Table 1).
Terminology
Standard spelling and terminology should be used whenever possible. Avoid creating new terms or acronyms for entities that already exist. Technical terms that are used in statistics should not be used as non-technical terms, such as "random" (which implies a randomizing device), "normal," "significant" (which implies statistical significance), and "sample."
Units of Measurement
In most countries the International System of Units (SI) is standard, or is becoming so, and bioscientific journals in general are in the process of requiring the reporting of data in these metric units. However, insofar as this practice is not yet universal, particularly in the United States, it is permissible for the time being to report data in the units in which calculations were originally made, followed by the opposite unit equivalents in parentheses; ie, English units (SI units) or SI units (English units). Nevertheless, researchers and authors considering submission of manuscripts to the JMPT should begin to adopt SI as their primary system of measurement as quickly as it is feasible.
Abbreviations and symbols
Use only standard abbreviations for units of measurement, statistical terms, biological references, journal names, etc. Avoid abbreviations in titles and abstracts. The full term should precede its abbreviation for the first use in the manuscript, unless it is a standard unit of measurement. For standard abbreviations, consult the following: 1) Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals (Ann Intern Med 1997;126:36-47); 2) American Medical Association manual of style. 10th ed. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins; 2007; 3) Scientific style and format, the CBE manual for authors, editors, and publishers. 6th ed. Cambridge (UK): Cambridge University Press; 1994. - 1. Last name of author(s) and their initials in capitals separated
by a space with a comma separating each author. (List all authors when 6 or fewer; when 7 or more, list only the first 6 and add et al.)
4. Figures
Figures should not be included in the manuscript file. Instead they should be uploaded separately. Figures include images, charts, graphs, and lists of information (eg, inclusion criteria). Illustrations (including lettering, numbering and/or symbols) must be of professional quality and of sufficient size so that when reduced for publication all details will be clearly readable. Rough sketches with freehand or typed lettering are not acceptable.
Include legends for figures after the reference section in the blinded manuscript file. Identify each figure with Arabic numerals in the same sequence as they appear in the text in parentheses (eg, Fig 1). Do not type legends in the image file. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the illustrations, identify and explain each one clearly in the legend.
All illustrations (including x-rays) must be uploaded as at least 200 dpi resolution in JPEG format. The file should be 2MB or less in size. Figures should be submitted as separate JPEG files and not embedded in the manuscript or Word file. Each figure should be saved using the figure number in its file name (eg, Fig1) and uploaded as a separate file. Original data (eg, Excel file) for graphs or charts may be requested by the editor if the submitted figure is not clear or of poor quality for printing. Typically no more than eight figures are acceptable (eg, Fig 1A and Fig 1B are considered two figures).
If photographs of persons are used the submission must be accompanied by signed written permission to publish the photographs. If a figure has been previously published, acknowledge the original source and submit written permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the image. Permission is required, regardless of authorship or publisher, except for documents in the public domain, in this case the source of the image should be clearly labeled. Since JMPT articles appear in both the print and online versions of the journal, and wording of the letter should specify permission in all forms and media. Failure of the author to obtain electronic permission rights will result in the images not appearing in the paper or rejection. The acceptance of color illustrations is at the discretion of the editor. Costs of color printing will be incurred by the authors.
5. Assignment of copyright and permissions
At the time of initial submission, all manuscripts must be accompanied by a properly completed authorship form for all authors. Upon submission, authors will not disseminate of any part of the material contained in the manuscript without prior written approval from the editor. Nonobservance of this copyright stipulation may result in rejection of the submission for publication.
Assignment of copyright should be uploaded to the website in order to initiate manuscript processing for peer review. Multiple authors should submit separate versions of the form (all signatures should not be on the same form). Manuscripts will not be processed until all signatures have been received. The assignment of copyright form may be obtained here or on the JMPT submission website.
6. Conflict of interest
At the time of initial submission, all manuscripts must be accompanied by a properly completed conflict of interest form for all authors. The conflict of interest form may be obtained here or on the JMPT submission website.
7. Permissions
All permissions should be submitted at the time of initial manuscript submission. It is the corresponding author's responsibility to secure all permissions and provide these to the JMPT editorial office. Permissions include permission to state names or institutions in the acknowledgements, permissions from models who are identifiable in figures, and permissions from patients of case reports (when applicable), etc. Illustrations or content from other publications (print or electronic) must be submitted with written permission from the copyright holder (and author if required) and must be acknowledged in the manuscript, as delineated by the permission granting publisher. Please upload jpeg or pdfscan of permissions to the website.
Instructions for authors updated: July 25, 2011