Guide for Authors

About the journal

  • International Journal of Medical arts “IJMA” is establish as an international, open access, double-blinded, peer-reviewed journal, published on behalf of Damietta Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Egypt. IJMA is published under the “Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Public License (CC BY-SA 4.0)”, available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.
  • IJMA had been published in a quartile manner (four times a year) from first issue of volume 1 (July 2019) to the fourth issue of volume 3 (October 2021). Then, IJMA adopts monthly publication schedule (Sarting from volume 4, issue 1, January 2022).
  • Articles are published online when ready for publication as Articles in Press. Additional issues may be published for special events.
  • IJMA is indexed in J-Gate database.

Aims and scope

  • The journal is concerned with preclinical (basic), clinical and experimental original findings from all medical fields and its related sciences (arts) (e.g., Pharmacy, Nursing, Dentistry, Science, Primary healthcare sector, etc.,). This multidisciplinary journal offers a chance for researchers to interact and develop an integrative, high-quality researches to benefit clinicians, policymakers, healthcare providers and overall society. The most important principle for the acceptance is the scientific excellence.

Type of articles

  • Original article; Review article (Narrative, Systematic and Meta-analysis); Case reports; Perspectives, Conference Abstract; Poster presentation; Book review, Letter to editor and editorial.

Editorial Process

  • The International Journal of Medical arts accepts submissions provided that, at the time of submission, the article had not simultaneously been submitted, considered for publication or already accepted for publication elsewhere. The Authors should assign one of them as a corresponding author to contact “IJMA” for all actions related to the manuscript.  
  • When a new submitted article is received, it will be distributed to one of the primary editors. He/she reads the article, consults others in the editorial office, and decides whether article should enter the peer review process, based on the editorial criteria of the journal of originality and importance. However, the “Editor in Chief” retains the right to directly forward the article to reviewers without passage to the primary editor. The first decision should be taken within 2 weeks, and the corresponding author will be notified by his/her email through the online submission system.  

Peer review process

  • Peer review often helps authors and editors improve the quality of reporting. The “International Journal of Medical Arts” adheres to a double-blind peer-review process. Thus, if the editorial office decision to proceed in review process, the article will be passed to many reviewers with relevant expertise. The article must be reviewed by at least two reviewers. However, in circumstances, this condition could not be achieved or there is a contradictory decision between reviewers, an editor will be invited to review the manuscript. The selection of reviewers depends on expertise, reputation and our own previous experience of a referee’s characteristics. Authors will be asked to provide reviewers, which will be helpful in journal peer-review process. 

Final decision after peer review

  • After the peer-review process, the editors consider reviewer’s advice and then proceed to one of the following decisions:
  • Acceptance for publication
  • Inviting authors to revise their manuscript to fulfil specific needs before a final decision could be reached
  • Reject publication on the basis of reviewer recommendations (note, our system retains files of rejected manuscripts. However, IJMA did not disclose any data of rejected manuscripts).
  • Manuscripts accepted for publication are copy edited for grammar, punctuation, language, print style, and format. IJMA received help in language and scientific editing by the software and support provided by the Egyptian Knowledge Bank, and two professors (consultants) of English and scientific writing. Page proofs will be sent to the corresponding author. The corresponding author is expected to provide response within seven working days.

Post-publication peer review

  • IJMA among others believes that true peer-review begins only on the date a paper is published. Thus, post-publication peer review is encouraged all readers to submit comments, questions, or criticisms about published articles, directly to IJMA editorial board (see contact details).

Highlights

  • Highlights are optional yet highly encouraged for this journal, as they increase the discoverability of your article via search engines. They consist of a short collection of bullet points that capture the novel results of your research as well as new methods that were used during the study. Highlights may be submitted in a separate editable file in the online submission system. Otherwise, it could be provided within manuscript article in a separate page. Please use 'Highlights' in the file name (if separately submitted) and include 3 to 5 bullet points (maximum 100 characters, including spaces, per bullet point).

Copyrights

  • Authors who publish with “IJMA” retain copyright to their work.

Copyright (author contribution) form

  • The author will be asked to sign a Copyright Form and submit it with the manuscript by the corresponding author (on behalf of all authors), defining the scope of the article, financial and non-financial relationships and activities of interest, declaring contributions of authors and funding agencies (if any), and confirming that the paper is arranged according to the 'Guide for Authors' (Click to download the copyright form).

Publication ethics

  • Author must indicate that, their work was done according to the Declaration of Helsinki principles (https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki-ethical-principles-for-medical-research-involving-human-subjects/), and a formal review and approval by an appropriate institutional research and ethics committee is required (The number and date of approval must be provided within the methods section of the manuscript).
  • When reporting experiments on animals, authors should indicate that, their work is in line with the national standards for the care and use of laboratory animals, or with other recommendations from “the International Association of Veterinary Editors’ Consensus Author Guidelines on Animal Ethics and Welfare (http://www.veteditors.org/consensus-author-guidelines-on-animal-ethics-and-welfare-for-editors).
  • Consent: In clinical trials, an informed consent must be provided by the patient or his/her guardian and the work must be compliant with the guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (icmje.org).
  • Confidentiality must be guaranteed and it is the responsibility of the authors to ensure that, patients' names, IDs, or hospital numbers not be violated in any section of their manuscript (including figures).
  • Plagiarism Prevention: IJMA uses the iThenticate software “Clarivate Analytics”, which is completely provided by EKB for IJMA, to detect instances of overlapping and similar text in submitted manuscripts. IJMA permits an overall similarity index of ≤ 20% for a manuscript to be considered for publication. The acceptable limit for similarity of text from a single source is 5%. If the similarity level is above 5%, then the manuscript is returned to the author for revision. Plagiarism is strictly prohibited, and by submitting the article for publication, the authors agree that the publishers have the right to take appropriate action if plagiarism or fabricated information is discovered.
  • Research Misconduct: Scientific misconduct in research includes but is not limited to data fabrication; data falsification, including misleading manipulation of images; and plagiarism. Each case will be treated individually and decisions will be built using Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) flowcharts (https://publicationethics.org/guidance/Flowcharts). Cases also may be submitted – anonymously – to be discussed in COPE forums. If retraction is the decision, the article will be stamped by a retraction stamp through all pages and besides the title of the article.
  • Corrections and retractions: Honest errors represented a part of science and publishing processes and upon detection, correction is required, encouraged and supported by IJMA. Corrections are considered for errors of fact, and published in both electronic and print format to ensure proper indexing. The old version of article had an announcement of recent version, which will be published with correction. This applied for errors which did not change the direction significance of results, interpretations and conclusion of the article. However, if errors are serious enough to affect validations of results and conclusion of the article, retraction is the rule.  However, retraction with republication (replacement) could be considered in cases of unintentional, and honest errors (e.g., miscalculation or misclassification) with valid science. The article considered for republication with further editorial and peer review with inclusion of original data and extent of correction, as an appendix for transparency.  
  • Authorship criteria
  • For authorship to be considered, the author must fulfil the 4 criteria of authorship recommended by International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). These criteria are: 1) Significant participation in the concept or design of the work; or the gaining, analysis, or explanation of data for the work; 2) Drafting the work or revising it critically; 3) Approve the final version submitted for publication; 4) Agreement to be responsible for all aspects of the work regarding its accuracy and integrity.
  • It is the collective responsibility of the authors of the work, not IJMA, to guarantee that all people named as authors meet all four authorship criteria; it is not the role of IJMA editors to determine who qualifies or does not qualify for authorship or to mediate authorship conflicts.
  • Contribution details: Authors should provide a description of individual contribution of each author in the manuscript. Contribution should include author’s role in concept development, study design, definition of intellectual content, literature search, data acquisition, data analysis, manuscript preparation, manuscript writing and manuscript revision.
  • Changes to authorship: Authors are expected to consider carefully the list and order of authors beforesubmitting their manuscript and provide the definitive list of authors at the time of the original submission. Any addition, deletion or rearrangement of author names in the authorship list should be made only before the manuscript has been accepted and must be approved by the journal Editor in chief. To request such a change, the Editor in Chief must receive the following from the corresponding author: (a) the reason for the change in author list and (b) written confirmation (e-mail, letter) from all authors that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. In the case of addition or removal of authors, this includes confirmation from the author being added or removed.
  • Non-Author Contributors: Contributors who do not meet all 4 of the authorship criteria should not be listed as authors, but they should be acknowledged. Examples of such contributions include but not limited to acquisition of funding, administrative support, writing assistance, technical editing, language editing, and proofreading.
  • Financial and Non-Financial Relationships and Activities, and Conflicts of Interest
  • A declaration of financial (e.g., employment, consultations, ownership, honoraria and patents), non-financial relationships and activities of interest (e.g, personal relationships or competition, and intellectual beliefs) must be provided. If any conflicts not found, it must be declared. Financial interests, direct or indirect, that exist or may be perceived to exist for individual contributors in connection with the content of the manuscript must declared in the cover letter. Sources of outside financial support of the project must be mentioned in the cover letter

Clinical trial registration

  • International Journal of Medical Arts advocates the registration of clinical trials at or before the time of first patient enrollment. IJMA would publish clinical trials that have been registered with a clinical trial registry that permits free online access to public. According to ICMJE guidelines, the clinical trial is any research that assigns people to an intervention, with or without control group, to investigate the associations between an intervention and a health outcome. Registration in the following registers is acceptable: http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/index.asp; http://www.umin.ac.jp/ctr; http://isrctn.org/ and http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/

Manuscript submission

  • Manuscripts are fully submitted through an electronic submission system, at the site [https://ijma.journals.ekb.eg/]. Our online submission system guides you stepwise through the process of providing your article details and uploading your files. The system converts your article files to a single PDF file used in the peer-review process. Editable files (e.g., doc, docx, etc..) are required to typeset your article for final
  • New users must register an account at the journal site. Registration is free but mandatory. Registered authors can keep track of their submitted articles after logging into their account using their user’s name and password.
  • The journal does not charge for submission and processing of the manuscripts.
  • Editorial team will appreciate all feedback and solve any problems facing authors, just contact editorial team at (https://ijma.journals.ekb.eg), email at ijma20019@gmail.com; or through WhatsApp direct number +201550743344).
  • To provide more ease and comfort of submission process, IJMA editorial team decided to provide all data of submitted manuscript in a single file (besides author’s data registered directly on the submission system and copyright form).
  • Authors are advised to attached their raw data file (used in statistical analysis), as a supplementary file.

Manuscript preparation

Manuscripts must be prepared in accordance with "Uniform requirements for Manuscripts submitted to Biomedical Journals" developed by the ICMJE (December 2019), available at http://www.icmje.org/. ICMJE developed these guidelines to review and establish the best practices and ethical standards in the conduct and reporting of research published in medical journals, and to help authors, editors, reviewers and publishers create and disseminate an accurate, clear, reproducible, unbiased articles. IJMA follows ICMJE “Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals”.

  • General considerations:
  • The manuscript text or original articles should be divided into sections, using the “IMRAD” structure (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion Sections; and subheadings are permitted). Note: A separate section for “The Aim of The Work” must be provided after introduction and the References list, of course, must be provided at the end of the manuscript.
  • Other types of manuscripts (e.g., meta-analyses, case reports, narrative reviews and editorials) may require different structured formats.
  • IJMA recommends the use of available specific guidelines for reporting of different study types (e.g., CONSORT (www.consort-statement.org) for randomized trials, STROBE for observational studies (http://strobe-statement.org/), PRISMA for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (http://prisma-statement.org/), and STARD for studies of diagnostic accuracy (http://www.equator-network.org/reporting-guidelines/stard/) and for an extensive list of regulations, visit national library of medicine (NLM) Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives By Organization, at https://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/research_report_guide.html
  • Title
  • Title should be informative, concise, and specific. Population type should be specified in the title, when possible. The study design information should be a part of the title (particularly for Case Reports, Randomized Trials, Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses). The key terms in a title should be arranged, from (exposure, outcome, population, study type), as in the following examples:
  • Association of Exposure to Endocrine Disruptors During the First Year of Life with Precocious Puberty of Adolescents”;
  • Effect of a Teaching Program Implementation on Inappropriate Antibiotic Use Among Primary Care Physicians: A Randomized Clinical Trial.
  • Author information
  • Author information must include each author’s full name, highest academic degree, the name of the department(s), institution(s) and country should be specified. A working example for author’s affiliation [Department of Pediatric Surgery, Damietta Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Egypt]. This data must be provided during the online submission process. Author’s email address the mandatory beginning points of each author’s data entry. IJMA recommends the listing of authors’ Open Researcher and Contributor Identification (ORCID) number.
  • Manuscript file should be submitted without author information. Such information provided only on the electronic submission system and in the “title page” if provided.
  • Abstract
  • A structured abstract (divided into the following sections: Background, the Aim of the Work, Patients and Methods, Results and Conclusions) is required. The accepted word count is 150 to 300 words. It should highlight new and vital aspects of the study, note important limitations, and not overinterpret findings. It is our recommendations to warrant that, your abstract is accurately reflect the content of your article, as the abstract is crucial for indexing and usually the only part read by readers. The trial registration number and source of funding will be published after abstract.
  • Introduction
  • It should provide a context or background for the study (the nature of the current problem addressed in the research and its significance). Introduction must specify what is already known about the addressed problem, followed by the gab of knowledge (what is not known). Finally, provide the potential contribution of the current work to fill some of the gap (the rationale of the work). Only pertinent and most recent references are cited, and no data or conclusions of the reported work included. The objective or the aim of the work could be included at the end of introduction. However, IJMA adopts a separate section for the aim of the work or its objective.
  • Patients and Methods [Methodology or Materials and Methods]
  • Methods must be clear, and describes how and why a study was done. It should be sufficiently detailed to reproducible (e.g., others with access to the data would be able to independently reproduce the results). Only data available (used) at the writing of study protocol included. Any data obtained during the implementation belongs to the results section. A statement about ethical approval by review boards must be included and a rationale to deviate from research reporting guidelines – if occurred- must be provided.
  • The study participants or samples must be described in details regarding recruitment methods, eligibility, inclusion and exclusion criteria. The sample size calculation and methods of randomization must be included when applicable. Authors should use neutral, precise, and respectful tone to describe the study participants and avoid the use of any stigmatizing terms.
  • The primary (main) and secondary outcomes of the study must be addressed in detail. Specific methods and any used equipment must be linked to the manufacturer (the name and address provided in parentheses).
  • The procedures must be written in details to permit reproduction or returned to their references (where details could be found), with brief description.
  • Any drugs and chemicals used, must be presented by their generic name(s), dose(s), and route(s) of administration.
  • Statistical methods used in the analysis must be presented with sufficient detail to enable a knowledgeable reader to judge its appropriateness for the study and to verify the reported results. Statistical terms, abbreviations or symptoms must be defined. The software package, their manufacturer or distributer and its version must be specified.
  • Results
  • Results must be presented in a logical sequence in a text, tabular or figure formats, presenting the most important results at first. Data in tables must be not repeated in the text or figures. Results about all primary and secondary outcomes (identified in methods section) must be provided. An appendix could be added to include supplementary materials and technical details. Graphs could be used as alternative to tables with many entries, provided that, it does not duplicate data in tables.  
  • Discussion
  • This section wisely starting by summarization of the main and significant results of the study, exploration of potential mechanisms or explanations for these findings. The new and important results or aspects of the study must be emphasized; and results put in the context of the relevant evidence.
  • Do not repeat in detail any data or other information given in previous parts of the article, such as in the Introduction or the Results sections.
  • Limitations of the study and its potential implications for future research, clinical practice or policymaking must be addressed.
  • Link conclusions to the objectives of the study, but avoid unqualified sentences or conclusions not adequately supported by the results. Avoid any statements on economic impacts unless the manuscript includes the appropriate results. Finally, you could provide proper recommendations.
  • References
  • Direct references to original research sources should be provided. Avoid citation of pseudo- or predatory journals. References to accepted, un-published papers should be designated as “in press” or “forthcoming.” Information from submitted but not accepted papers should be cited in the text as “unpublished observations” with written permission from the source. A “Personal communication” or retracted article citation are not recommended. References should be numbered consecutively according their order in which they are first mentioned in the text.  In the manuscript text, references are identified Arabic numerals, in superscript, squared, bold parentheses.  Repeated references in text use the same number assigned for them at first appearance in the text. The titles of journals should be abbreviated according to the style used for MEDLINE (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/journals). Use modified NLM format for references in your list. Next are working examples.
  • Original Article “Forooghian F, Yeh S, Faia LJ, Nussenblatt RB. Uveitic foveal atrophy: clinical features and associations. Arch Ophthalmol. 2009 Feb;127(2):179-86. DOI: 1001/archophthalmol.2008.564”. Note: If there are more than six authors, list the first six authors, followed by et al. (Note: NLM now lists all authors). However, IJMA adhered to the first 6 followed by “et al.” and the use of unique digital object identifier “DOI” is recommended. Other identifiers “e.g., PubMed PMID, PubMed Central PMCID” are optionally required. 
  • Organization as author “Diabetes Prevention Program Research Group. Hypertension, insulin, and proinsulin in participants with impaired glucose tolerance. Hypertension. 2002;40(5):679-86” Do not forget to add DOI.
  • Both personal authors and organization as author (List all as they appear in the byline.) “Vallancien G, Emberton M, Harving N, van Moorselaar RJ; Alf-One Study Group. Sexual dysfunction in 1,274 European men suffering from lower urinary tract symptoms. J Urol. 2003;169(6):2257-61”.
  • To check other comprehensive list of all available “44” types, visit “https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html”
  • Tables
  • Tables usually used to summarize data, whenever possible. Previously, we recommend individual submission of each table, or use one file for tables, to guard against errors in tables. However, we advocate inclusion of tables in the end of the article after references list, or at their desired position in the text. Whatever the situation of table’s submission, table’s title should be short but self-explanatory, containing information that permits readers to understand the table’s content without having to go back to the text. Each table must be cited in the text (by its logical sequential number). Each column must have a short or an abbreviated heading. An explanatory footnotes and explanation of abbreviations must be included under each table. Symbols used to explain information when applicable, and its meaning specified in the footnotes.
  • Tables of original data are usually appropriate for electronic not printable formats. An appropriate statement should be added to inform readers about availability and location of this additional information. IJMA recommends online submission of such data as a supplementary material to be available for editorial and peer review.
  • Figures (graphs, illustrations)
  • Digital images submitted in a suitable format for printing. Radiological and histopathology figures must be of high-resolution and IJMA recommends individual submission. IJMA usually asks author consent to redraw or manipulate images for better representation in the printed issue, provided that, it did not change the nature of image. Thus, letters, numbers, and any symbols on figures should be clear, large enough and consistent throughout all related figures. Photomicrographs must have internal scale.
  • Symbols, arrows, or letters should contrast with the background, and all must be explained with the method of staining, in the legend. Figures numbered in a consecutive manner and must be cited in text.
  • Sources of previously published figures must be acknowledged with written permission of copyright holder, except those in public domain.
  • Separate file for legends could be provided with sufficient details.
  • Units of Measurement
  • IJMA recommends the use of units of “International System of Units”. However, any equivalents are accepted.
  • Abbreviations and Symbols
  • The use of standard abbreviations is recommended. Abbreviations in article title is prohibited.
  • The spelled-out abbreviations followed by the abbreviation in parenthesis should be used on first mention unless the abbreviation is a standard unit of measurement.

Reprints and proofs

  • IJMA provides no free printed reprints. Authors can purchase reprints, payment for which should be done at the time of submitting the proofs.

Publication schedule

  • IJMA publishes articles on its website immediately, short time after acceptance and follows a ‘continuous publication’ schedule.

Article publication charges (APC)

  • The APC, payable when manuscript is editorially accepted and before online publication of the full article. It is the responsibility of corresponding author to deliver APCs to IJMA administrative office representative. The current APCs are 2000 EL [Two thousand Egyptian Pounds] for articles submitted from Egypt and 150$ [One Hundred and Fifty United States Dollars for articles submitted from any other country.

Submission Checklist

  • Before submission of an article, the author could use this list to be sure of manuscript preparation according to IJMA guidelines (it is not a separate file or required to be submitted). Please check the relevant section in this Guide for Authors for more details.
  • Cover letter (Title page) [to be signed by all authors, mention previous publication/ presentations, mention source of funding, and declare financial and non-financial relationships and activities of interest).
  • Authors [provide first and last names, with middle name or its initials (where applicable), specify corresponding author with e-mail address (an official email is preferred), physical address and affiliation and did not reveal identity in paper except in title page).
  • Paper format [font type: Times New Roman; font size: 12 points; Line spacing: double spaced; number of pages in the bottom middle; paper size: A4; margins: 2.5 cm margin (up, down, right and left] and all manuscript written in one column.
  • Title: concise and informative. Avoid abbreviations and formulae.
  • Running title must be provided (not more than 100 characters, including spaces)
  • Abstract page contains the full title of the manuscript
  • Abstract provided (structured abstract of 150- 300 words)
  • Key words provided (3 to 5 keywords), followed by highlights
  • Introduction
  • Headings in title (ALL CAPITALS, except prepositions)
  • The references cited in the text should be in superscript format within square bracket.
  • References in reference list were written according to the journal's instructions
  • The full term for each abbreviation must be written at its first use in the article, numerals from 1 to 10 spelt out, numerals at the beginning of the sentence spelt out, the manuscript must be checked for spelling, grammar and punctuation errors, supply the manufacturer's name and address (city and state/ country) of cited brand names, and species names must be written in italic].
  • Tables and figures [figures of good quality (color), table and figure numbers in Arabic letters, figure legends provided, patients' privacy maintained (or permission letter provided), with footnotes].