All India Journal of Medical Sciences

Guideliness for Author

Cover Letter

Though cover letters are not required, important information that is not in the metadata, such as a meeting presentation date or a major conflict of interest not in the manuscript, should be communicated with initial manuscript submissions.

Manuscript Text File

Compile all text, references, figure legends, and tables into a single double-spaced digital file (preferably an MS Word document, Times New Roman, 12 Font).

Title Page

Create a title page that includes:

• Manuscript title
• Short Title
• Each author’s name, highest degree, and affiliation/institution
• Institution where the work was performed
• Contact information for one (1) corresponding author
• Acknowledgements.

Abstract

Provide a structured abstract (for original articles) of not more than 250 words containing the following:

• Background: Problem being addressed in the study
• Methods: How the study was performed
• Results: Salient results
• Conclusions: What the authors conclude from study results.

Introduction

The introduction should state why the study was carried out and what the specific aims of the study were. It should describe the background for the study (the available knowledge), its importance and its goals. It should be brief but complete enough for the reader to understand the reasons for the study without having to read previous publications on the subject.

Methods

These should be described in sufficient detail to permit evaluation and duplication of the work by others.

The following should be described in this section:

• Study design
• Setting
• Selection of participants
• Interventions
• Methods of measurement
• Data collection and processing
• Loss of data such as dropouts or patients lost to follow-up
• Outcome measures: primary and secondary
• Statistical methods used
• Ethical guidelines followed by the investigators.

Statistics

The following information should be given:

• The statistical universe, i.e. the population from which the sample for the study is selected
• Method of selecting the sample (subjects, animals, etc. from the statistical universe)
• Method of allocating the subjects into different groups
• Statistical methods used for presentation and analysis of data (e.g. mean and standard deviation values or
     percentage values), and statistical tests (e.g. Student’s t test, chi-square test, analysis of variance,
     non-parametric tests and multivariate techniques)
• Exact p values
• Confidence intervals for measurements wherever appropriate
• The software package (name and version) used for statistical analysis.

Results

These should be concise and include only the tables and figures necessary to enhance understanding of the text. Results should be presented in a logical, sequential order that parallels the organization of the methods section. The text should be used to highlight the most important aspects of the figures and tables, and to convey unique information. Data presented in tables and figures should not be duplicated in the text. Drug names, wherever used, should be generic. If the use of proprietary names is deemed a must for the study, generic names should be mentioned in parentheses.

Discussion

The discussion should summarize how the study findings add to the current knowledge, provide explanations for the findings, compare the study’s findings with available studies, discuss the limitations of the study and the implications for future research. Only those published articles directly relevant to interpreting the results and placing them in context should be referenced. The conclusion should be based on and justified by the results of the study. The particular relevance of the results to healthcare in India should be stressed. Conclusions regarding cost-benefit should be drawn only if a specific economic analysis formed a part of the study design.

Identifying Data

At appropriate places in the manuscript, please provide the following items:

• If applicable, a statement that the research protocol was approved by relevant institutional review boards or
    ethics committees and that all human participants gave written informed consent
• For clinical trials, registration number and registry name
• For studies containing microarrays, accession numbers and repository name.

References

References must be double-spaced and numbered consecutively as they are cited. References first cited in a table or figure legend should be numbered so they will be in sequence with references cited in the text at the point where the table or figure is first mentioned. At the end of the article, the full list of references should include the names of authors, the full title of the journal article or book chapters, the title of journals abbreviated according to the Index Medicus style (www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html) the year of publication, the volume number and the first and final page numbers of the article or chapter. List all citation authors when there are six or fewer; when there are seven or more, list the first three, followed by et al. The authors should check that the references are accurate; lack of accuracy may result in the rejection of an otherwise adequate manuscript.

The following are sample references:

1. Shapiro AMJ, Lakey JRT, Ryan EA, et al. Islet transplantation in seven patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus using a glucocorticoid-free immunosuppressive regimen. N Engl J Med 2000;343:230–8.
2. Goadsby PJ. Pathophysiology of headache. In: Silberstein SD, Lipton RB, Dalessio DJ, eds. Wolff's headache and other head pain. 7th ed. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 2001:57–72.
3. Kuczmarski RJ, Ogden CL, Grammer-Strawn LM, et al. CDC growth charts: United States. Advance data from vital and health statistics. No. 314. Hyattsville, Md.: National Center for Health Statistics, 2000. (DHHS publication no. (PHS) 2000-1250 0-0431.)
4. Medicare: trends in fees, utilization, and expenditures for imaging services before and after implementation of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. Washington, DC: Government Accountability Office, September 2008.

Numbered references to personal communications, unpublished data, or manuscripts either “in preparation” or “submitted for publication” are unacceptable. If essential, such materials can be incorporated at appropriate places in the text.

Tables

All tables should be included at the end of the manuscript text file. Tables should be double-spaced (including footnotes) and a title should be included for each table. Extensive tables or supplementary materials will be published as supplemental materials with the digital version of the article.

Figures

High-quality images should be submitted separately in JPG or TIFF format. The labelling must be clear and neat. All photomicrographs should indicate the magnification of the print. Use arrows or letters in contrast with the background to indicate special features. Colour illustrations will be accepted if they make a contribution to the understanding of the manuscript.