Miscellaneous

• Review Process: Single blind
• Accepted manuscript file formats: Word and LaTex
  • Publisher provide a template for LaTex submissions
• Language: Any English (consistently used)
• Each heading on a separate line
• SI units throughout the article
• Add a section named “Statement and Declarations” after acknowledgements and author contributions
  • This section contains the following subsections: Ethical Considerations, Consent to Participate, Consent for Publication, Declaration of Conflicting Interest, Funding Statement, Data Availability

 

Title Page

• Title: Concise, descriptive, and unambiguous
• Full names and affiliations of the authors
• Corresponding author’s details
• Present/Permanent address

 

Abstract

• Unstructured
• For clinical trials, add the name and URL of the trial registry and the registration number at the end of the abstract
• At least 5 keywords

 

Figures

• Accepted file formats:
  • MS Word, PowerPoint, or Excel: For any illustration type
  • EPS: For line art and graphs (at least 800 dpi)
  • TIFF or JPEG: For photographs (with no graphs or text; at least 300 dpi)
• Placed within the main text near the instances where they are first cited
• Figures created in formats other than MS Word to be submitted separately
  • For these figures, insert a placeholder note in the main text
• Preferable font within the figures: Sans Serif
• Number and cite the figures sequentially

 

Tables

• Editable text and not images
• Number and cite the tables sequentially
• Avoid vertical rules and shading in table cells
• Placed within the main text near the instances where they are first cited

 

Citations

• Vancouver style; author-date style
• Single author: <(Author last name, Year)>
• Two authors: <(Author 1 last name and Author 2 last name, Year)>
• Three or more authors: <(Author 1 last name et al., Year)>
• In one group of citations, arrange the citations alphabetically and then chronologically. For example, (ABC, 2000a, 2000b, 2001; BCD, 2005).
  Author’s first name’s initials maybe used in case of ambiguity between two citations.

 

Reference List

• Arrange the references alphabetically first and then chronologically.
• Format: https://www.sagepub.com/docs/default-source/rp-pages/info-for-authors/sage_vancouver_reference_style_1.pdf

 

Supplementary Files

• Published as is
• Ensure no tracked changes if submitted in MS Office format
• Accepted file formats: https://www.sagepub.com/journals/information-for-authors/preparing-your-manuscript/supplemental-material-guidelines-for-authors

 

Declaration of Conflicting Interest

• A relevant statement to be added at the end of the manuscript
• A declaration is required from all the authors
• If no conflict, mention: “The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.”

 

Acknowledgments

• At the end of the article before the references
• List the individuals who provided help during the research
• Recommendation: Obtain consent from the individuals to be acknowledged

 

Funding Sources

• Add a relevant statement even if no funding was obtained.

 

Ethical Considerations

• For studies involving human participants, human data, or human tissue, include a statement on ethics approval and consent (even when ethics approval was not needed), including approval number and the name of the ethics committee
• Add in the Methods sections as well as at the end in the “Statements and Declarations” section
• If this section is “Not applicable”, mention so

 

Consent for Participation

• Describe the consent information
• State if the obtained consent was written or verbal
• If the need for this consent is waived, mention so
• If this section is “Not applicable”, mention so

 

Consent for Publication

• Required if an individual person’s data is being published
• Written informed consent required from the participant(s)
• It should not be shared during submission
• Provide a separate confirmatory letter to the journal regarding this consent
• If this section is “Not applicable”, mention so.

 

Data Availability Statement

• Provide a link to the public repository where the data is deposited
• If data sharing is not possible, provide an explanation