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Author Guidelines

KUMJ Guideline to Authors

Introduction
Kathmandu University Medical Journal (KUMJ) is a quarterly, indexed, peer-reviewed, open-access, international medical journal [ISSN 1812-2027 (Print) and 4812-2078 (Online at www.kumj.com.np). It is indexed in MEDLINE/PubMed and is also selected for coverage by ELSEVIER BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATABASES including EMBASE, EMNursing, Compendex, GEOBASE, Mosby Yearbooks Scoupus. KUMJ is an official journal of Kathmandu University (KU) and is published jointly by the medical colleges under the affiliation of KU with the sole aim of promoting and sharing quality medical information.

KUMJ stands as a forum from which the researches conducted in various disciplines in medicine, the reviews done, novel and unique cases which we encounter during our professional career can be made available to our readers.

Types of articles
In each issue, we publish articles under certain types/ sections. The types of articles we publish are as follows:

  • Editorials
  • Original research/studies
  • Audits
  • Case notes
  • Review articles
  • Medical education
  • StudentKUMJ
  • Letters to the editor

Beside the regular types of articles we also sometimes publish articles under categories like Invited Articles (See below for details of each type), Proceedings/ Declaration of Conferences/Congress, Updates, Supplements, etc. The types are determined by the title, aim(s) and objective(s), and most importantly the content of the manuscript. We also require that the author clearly specifies the type of article s/he is submitting. However, the final decision under which category the article is published rests on the decision of the editorial board. In such case, the author will be duly informed regarding the decision. The author will have the right to withdraw the article if s/he chooses, but must do so within the specified time.

Authorship criteria To qualify for authorship, the author must have contributed substantially to the intellectual content of the manuscript such as:
o A.
o conception and design
o acquisition of data
o analysis and interpretation of data
o B.
o drafting of the manuscript
o critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content
o C.
o statistical analysis
o obtaining funding
o supervision

Manuscript processing
Manuscripts are processed as per standard procedure mentioned in KUMJ policy for manuscript processing. In case of any confusion, author can contact KUMJ at info@kumj.com.np.

Manuscript submission
Authors must submit manuscripts via email in the following address: editor@kumj.com.np . All manuscripts must be addressed to the Chief Editor, KUMJ.

Language and grammar
The language of the manuscript must be United Kingdom (UK) English and proof-read at least once before submission. It must be sent in Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx).

Images (photographs, drawings)
If images (photographs/ line drawings) are to be included, clearly scanned images free from technical artefacts should be submitted. Magnifications, areas of key interest should be indicated by an arrow, symbol or abbreviation the details of which should be explained at the bottom of the figures. While doing so the author is instructed to also provide a clean duplicate image. The scanning resolution should be 300 dpi (dots per inch). Captions for each image must be provided in the last page of the manuscript. Please make sure each figure is cited in order within the text, e.g. (Fig 2). Specifications of the image fi le should be as follows while submitting:
Image file format: jpeg, tiff
Resolution: 300 dpi (dots per inch)

Tables
Tables should be as few as possible and should present only essential data. Each must be typed on a separate 2 page with a title or caption and clearly numbered. Please make sure each table is cited within the text, e.g. (Table 3).

Permissions Written permission to reproduce borrowed material (illustrations, tables and photographs) must be obtained. Authors must ensure that appropriate permission has been obtained for the publication of identifiable clinical photographs.

Borrowed and previously published material should be acknowledged in the captions in this style: ‘Reproduced by kind permission of . . . (publishers) . . . from . . . (reference).' It is the responsibility of the author to obtain all such permissions from the original publishers and authors, and to submit them with the manuscript.

Writing style
In order to make the journal uniform and standard we request that all matters submitted for publication should follow "Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals" as published by International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) www.icmje.org

Units and abbreviations
Avoid abbreviations in the title and abstract. All unusual abbreviations should be fully explained at their first occurrence in the text. All measurements should be expressed in SI units.

Drug names
Generic drug names should be used.

Contractions
Author should not write in contraction. For example, can't, don't, &, and so on. Only proper use of language serves the purpose of effective communication.

Reference
Authors are strictly instructed to follow Vancouver system for citing scientific literature. Any manuscript reference not following Vancouver system will immediately be sent back to author for revision. Authors can get a comprehensive explanation of the system with practical examples in the following link: http://www. lib.monash.edu.au/tutorials/citing/ vancouver.html.

Authors must also note that KUMJ follows following variation in Vancouver style:

  1. Superscripts must be used rather than brackets.
  2. Numbers should be inserted to the left of colons and semi-colons.
  3. Full stops are placed after the reference number.
  4. It is important that the punctuation and form is consistently applied to the whole document.

Guidelines on individual article types

Editorial
This is written in each issue by the editor or members of editorial board and is not open for external authors unless invited.

Original research articles
We publish all types of research articles, i.e. descriptive, analytical, and experimental. However, we believe that some descriptive studies fall under audit section more than as an original research article. Such articles which do not contribute substantially to existing knowledge or to new concepts, will be placed under AUDIT section of the journal.

The original research articles should have following headings in its manuscript:

  • Title
  • Abstract Introduction
  • Material and methods
  • Results Discussion
  • Conclusion
  • Limitations
  • Acknowledgements
  • References

Title page
Your title page, numbered as 1, should give the title in bold letters and the authors' names (as they are to appear and as in the declaration form), affiliations and complete addresses, including postal (zip) codes. Indicate the corresponding author clearly. An e-mail address an easily reachable phone number, and a full postal address are required for the corresponding author.

Title

  • The simpler the title the better.
  • Consider the target readership.
  • Be brief - short titles are clearer and more arresting.
  • Avoid excessive adjectives and noun strings.

Abstracts and keywords
A summary of the content of your manuscript, a maximum of 250-300 words should be provided on a separate page following the title page. The abstract should be structured and should be under the following subheadings

  • Background
  • Aims and Objectives
  • Design
  • Setting
  • Materials and methods
  • Results
  • Conclusion
  • Keywords (A list of three to six keywords in alphabetical order)

The abstract should contain the essence of the whole paper and should stand alone. It should consist of four basic parts: Why the study was done, what was found, what was concluded? Stick to the maximum limit provided above. Be clear and concise and avoid unnecessary detail.

Introduction
This should introduce the research/ study and give an idea of what is to follow in rest of the paper.

  • Tell readers why you have undertaken the study.
  • Clarify what your work adds.
  • Keep it short.
  • Make sure that you know what studies have gone before.
  • Be sure your readers are convinced of the importance of your question, but don't overdo it.
  • Give the study's design but not the conclusion (optional).

Material and methods
This section should clearly state the methodology of the research, including the study design, setting, procedures, materials, data, protocols, and statistical tools used. It must be able to guide any suitably qualified reader to repeat the experiment in the same way; hence this section of the manuscript should include details of how materials and information may be obtained, including any restrictions that may apply.

Basically, it should include three questions: How was the study designed? How was the study carried out? and How was the data analysed?

Results

  • Only significant results must be shown under this heading.
  • Use a mixture of text, tables, and figures.
  • Give the actual numbers of results that are plotted.
  • Establish how comparable your groups were.
  • Mention the unexpected results also.
  • Do not give results to a greater degree of accuracy than that of the measurement.
  • Avoid using percentages unless the group have more than 100 subjects.
  • When condensing results give the number of subjects, the range of results, the central tendency (mean ±SD), and the spread (confidence interval for the mean).
  • If you have done an analysis of variance give the estimates with their degrees of freedom and p values.
  • Prepare tables and illustrations according to the instructions mentioned above.
  • No duplication of results is allowed in text and in figure, unless it has its own purpose.
  • Tables and illustrations/ graphs/ charts should not represent the same results. It is only a waste of space and time. Instead, use the space to show some important findings in tables and some in graphical ways.
  • Write all your results under one section referring to appropriate tables, graphs, or illustrations. Do not write results separately under each tables or graphs.

Discussion

  • This is one of the most important headings of the manuscript and should be very carefully constructed.
  • Discuss major findings. It should not merely be a repetition of results section. Only duplicating data from results section into this heading is NOT allowed.
  • Discuss possible problems with the methods used.
  • Compare your results with previous work.
  • Discuss the clinical and scientific (if any) implications of your findings.
  • Suggest further work.
  • An otherwise very good manuscript but with poor discussion may be rejected for the same reason.

Conclusion
Produce a succinct conclusion. Show your readers why this paper was important. Show them that your paper was meaningful and useful. Don't simply repeat things that were in your paper. Show them how the points you made and the support and examples you used were not 4 random, but fit together. Give your reader something to think about, perhaps a way to use your paper in the "real" world. If your introduction went from general to specific, make your conclusion go from specific to general. Think globally.

Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements section should state person(s)/ firms to whom the author has to acknowledge. For more details, please refer to Declaration of authorship responsibility, financial disclosure, competing interest, copyright transfer, and acknowledgement form available along with this guideline.

References
For references, please use Vancouver system as mentioned above in Writing style.

Case reports

  • It should include four sections: Abstract with keywords, introduction, case report, and discussion
  • Abstract should be an unstructured one about 150 words.
  • Valid written expressed consent must be taken prior to involving any person in case note manuscript. The identity of the patient must not be revealed by text or figures. If the figure/picture tends to reveal the identity of the individual, it is the responsibility of the author to have explained so to the patient before submitting the manuscript.
  • The report should detail: what happened to the patient, the time course of events, why the particular management was chosen.
  • Opening section, i.e. introduction should introduce the case in short and highlight the importance of presenting it as a case report in the journal.
  • Positive features should be accentuated and irrelevant details avoided.
  • A photograph or other illustration may be useful.
  • Confidentiality must be absolute.
  • The discussion should be useful and not overlong.
  • Reference other work only when necessary to make a specific point.
  • Cases that really merit publication always have an educational message.

Audits

  • Audit section may have similar sections like an original research article, i.e. abstract, introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, acknowledgements, references. Here, we publish papers that tend to give an audit of case records in one or more healthcare setting(s). The findings of audit articles provide the readers with a profile, or composition of cases occurring in wards or departments of the facility only.
  • If some study is done on a large scale enough which contributes to scientific literature reflecting important findings or contribution related to the country or some large geographic area, can then be better placed in an original research/ study section rather than an audit.
  • The decision as to whether a supposed original research article belongs to original research article itself or is published under the section of audit finally relies on the editorial board.

Review articles

  • Review article must incorporate various aspects of the topic chosen, and should also incorporate latest researches and findings. It should not merely be a collection of quotes from textbooks or very old articles of journals that does not contribute anything new to the scientific literature base already available.
  • Ideal Contents of a review:
    • What is the problem?
    • Historical background
    • Basic science
    • Methodology
    • Human studies
    • Discussion
    • Conclusions
    • Recommendations
    • The future
  • The ideal review should be topical, up to date, balanced, accurate, authoritative, quotable, provocative and a good read.

Medical education
 Medical education section should be pertinent to the education process in the medical field. It may be about teaching-learning process in undergraduate, post graduate or higher levels.

Student KUMJ
StudentKUMJ is a section in the Kathmandu University Medical Journal (KUMJ) especially provisioned for medical / nursing students. To ensure that articles in the studentKUMJ are authoritative and accurate, our policy is that all educational articles must be co-authored by an expert. The co-author has to contribute substantially in terms of helping in the conception of the topic, 5 providing suitable resources, revision and final approval of the write-up.

We accept article on:

  • Education
  • Careers
  • Life
  • View Point
  • What's on the web?

Specially invited articles
Articles which are specially invited in KUMJ from the editorial board may fall among any one of the types mentioned above and should follow the guidelines as above just the same.

Fillers
Authors may submit some quotes, illustrations and similar filling materials for the journal, which will be considered for inclusion in both print and online version of KUMJ and its source acknowledged. These contributions however do not fall under types of articles to be indexed for scientific purposes.

Letter to the Editor
Letter to the Editor will be accepted or edited and published at the Editor's discretion. The author must give a full reference of the article published in KUMJ while writing the letter to which he is referring. While writing be succinct (approximately 325 words) and address one or two major subjects regarding the article. Letters that, in the Editor's view, require a response from the authors of the article will be held pending notification of the authors, who will have fifteen days to respond. On receipt of an author's response, the letter and the author response will be published in the journal and will also be posted in the web. If we do not receive an author response within fifteen business days, the letter will be published with a note stating, "The author has been invited to respond and has not done so."

General instructions to authors

  • The decision of the editor will be final for modification or rejection. However, the author may withdraw his/her manuscript prior to publication when given a chance by the editor (e.g. after modification).
  • If the authorship of a paper is changed in any way after it has been reviewed, the Editor will require a letter, signed by all authors named on the original or on the revised submission, explicitly agreeing to the change.
  • Additional prints/ republication/translation:
    • As KUMJ is an Open Access Journal and we post all the articles published in the web in PDF format, the author may print additional copies. However, for doing so the author has an obligation to inform KUMJ. This will also help us in tracking reprinted articles. However, if the quantity of reprints required is more than 50 or in a commercial basis, prior written permission is required by the author from the Chief Editor of KUMJ.
    • For republication of the article in another journal, the author must seek prior permission from KUMJ, clearly stating the purpose and request for permission to print again.
    • For translation of the article and publication in another language (in another journal), the author must seek prior permission from KUMJ along with the purpose and request for permission to print again. Both the above mentioned points require to be compliant with ICMJE guidelines for reprints and translation.
  • The submitted manuscript should actually represent the scientifi c work done and the data should not be manipulated for whatsoever purpose.
  • Any irregularities, misinformation, or manipulation of the data tending to skew the conclusion towards the side that does not represent the actual finding, if found, can result in the manuscript to be rejected or retracted (if already published). KUMJ may proceed with legal actions if needed in appropriate cases.
  • If authors of a published article subsequently become aware of a significant error in it, they should send a notifying letter to the editor of KUMJ as soon as possible. If the mistake is judged significant enough to warrant a published correction, the correction will be made as an "erratum" if the fault is KUMJ's; "correction" if the fault is the author's.

Colour online
We are usually able to substitute colour versions of illustrations in the online journal at no cost. Authors wishing to take advantage of this facility are asked to submit a high quality colour image file for producing it electronically during their initial submission.

KUMJ reserves the right whether or not to accept colour work that is not submitted in the format described above.

Supplementary online material
Authors wishing to include additional material supporting a paper for which there is no space in the printed journal, may wish to have this made available online with the paper on the KUMJ website. These supplementary materials must be submitted with the original manuscript and will be shown to the reviewers and the editors.

This allows papers to have greater depth, online enhancements, such as video clips and additional data sets, making them more useful to fellow specialists in the field who require detail, without distracting more general readers.

Authors should ensure that supplementary information is supplied in its FINAL format because it is not subedited and will appear online exactly as submitted. It cannot be altered, nor can new supplementary information be added, after the paper has been accepted for publication.

KUMJ is willing to consider publishing supplements to regular issues. Supplement proposals may be made at the request of:

  1. The journal editor, an editorial board member or a learned society may wish to organise a meeting, sponsorship may be sought and the proceedings published as a supplement.
  2. The journal editor, editorial board member or learned society may wish to commission a supplement on a particular theme or topic. Again, sponsorship may be sought.
  3. KUMJ itself may have proposals for supplements where sponsorship may be necessary.
  4. A sponsoring organisation, often a pharmaceutical company or a charitable foundation, that wishes to arrange a meeting, the proceedings of which will be published as a supplement.

In all cases, it is vital that the journal's integrity, independence and academic reputation is not compromised in any way.

 

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

  1. The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  2. The submission file is in Microsoft Word, RTF, or WordPerfect document file format.
  3. Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
  4. The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
  5. The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
  6. If submitting to a peer-reviewed section of the journal, the instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.
 

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