Tehran University Medical Journal

1. Aims and Scope: The “Tehran University Medical Journal” (TUMJ) is the official scientific and clinical monthly publication of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences. It accepts Original Papers, Review Articles, Short Communications and Letters to the Editor in the fields of basic science and medicine

2. Submission: Papers submitted for publication should describe original work, not previously published elsewhere, totally or partly. Manuscripts must be submitted only in Persian withEnglish abstracts and should be written according to sound grammar and proper terminology. Submission is acceptable via Journal URL: http://journals.tums.ac.ir/login. The Manuscript must be accompanied by a covering letter to the Editor-in-Chief, including title and author(s) name and undertaking that it has not been published or submitted elsewhere, and should include: Title; No author(s) name; the Abstract; Introduction; Materials & Methods; Results; Discussion; Acknowledgement and References.

3. The title page: The complete title of the manuscript, the name of all the authors with their highest qualifications, the department or institution to which they are attached, address for correspondence with telephone numbers, e-mail, and Fax number.

4. The abstract (no more than 250 words) in structured format as Background, Methods,Results and Conclusion followed by 3 to 6 Keywords must be presented.

Use terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of index medicus: (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html).

5. Introduction: This should summarize the purpose and the rationale for the study. It should neither review the subject extensively nor should it have data or conclusions of the study [in Persian].

6. Materials and Methods: This should include exact method or observation or experiment. If an apparatus is used, its manufacturer’s name and address should be given in parenthesis. If the method is established, give reference but if the method is new, give enough information so that another author is able to perform it. If a drug is used, its generic name, dose and route of administration must be given. For patients, age, sex with mean age ± standard deviation must be given. Statistical method must be mentioned and specify any general computer program used. The Info system used should be clearly mentioned [in Persian].

7. Results: It must be presented in the form of text, tables and illustrations. The contents of the tables should not be all repeated in the text. Instead, a reference to the table number may be given. Long articles may need sub-headings within some sections (especially the Results and Discussion parts) to clarify their contents [in Persian].

8. Discussion: This should emphasize the present findings and the variations or similarities with other work done in the field by other workers. The detailed data should not be repeated in the discussion again. Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that follow from them. It must be mentioned whether the hypothesis mentioned in the article is true, false or no conclusions can be derived [in Persian].

9. Acknowledgement: All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be covered in the acknowledgement section. It should include persons who provided technical help, writing assistance and departmental head who only provided general support. Financial and material support should also be acknowledged [in Persian].

10. Tables in limited numbers should be submitted with the captions placed above. Do not submit tables as photograph. Place explanatory matters in footnotes, not in the heading [in Persian].

11. Figures should be in limited numbers, with high quality art work and mounted on separate pages. The captions should be placed below.

12. The same data should not be presented in tables, figures and text, simultaneously.

13. References: Personal communications, manuscripts in preparation and other unpublished data are not cited in the reference list but may be mentioned in the text in parentheses. Identify references in the text by Farsi numerals in parentheses on the line. References should be typed, double-spaced, and separate from the text and numbered consecutively in the order in which they are mentioned in the text. (References cited in figures and tables, but not in the text, should be numbered consecutively following the text references.) Journal references should contain inclusive page numbers; book references specific page numbers. Indicate abstracts by the abbreviation ‘Abst’ and letters by ‘Lett’ in parentheses. Abbreviations of journals should conform to those used in Index Medicus, National Library of Medicine. The references should observe the following style:

Periodicals: List all authors if six or fewer; otherwise, list first six and add ‘et al’. Do not use periods after the authors initials

1. Vimala N, Mittal S, Kumar S. Sublingual misoprostol versus oxytocin infusion to reduce blood loss at cesarean section. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 2006;92(2):106-10.

2. Patted SS, Goudar SS, Naik VA, Bellad MB, Edlavitch SA, Kodkany BS, et al. Side effects of oral misoprostol for the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage: results of a community-based randomised controlled trial in rural India. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med 2009;22(1):24-8.

Books: Basmajian JV. Grant’s Method of Anatomy. 11th ed. Baltimore: Williams Wilkins; 1989.

Chapter in book: Monks R. Psychotropic drugs. In: Wall PD, Melzack RA, editors. Textbook of Pain. 3rd ed. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone; 1994. p. 963-89.

14. Proof Reading: A computer printout is sent to the corresponding author for proof reading before publication in order to avoid any mistakes. Corrections should be marked clearly and sent immediately to the Journal office.

15. Abbreviations and symbols: use only standard abbreviations. Avoid using them in the title and abstract. The full term for which an abbreviation stands should precede its first use in the text unless it is a standard unit of measurement. Short communication when possible; follow the same structure as original papers.

16. The corresponding author will be supplied with 3 free issues.

17. Ethics: Ethical considerations must be addressed in the Materials and Methods section. 1) Please state that informed consent was obtained from all human adult participants and from the parents or legal guardians of minors. Include the name of the appropriate institutional review board that approved the project. 2) Indicate in the text that the maintenance and care of experimental animals complies with National Institutes of Health guidelines for the humane use of laboratory animals, or those of your Institute or agency.

18. Conflicts of interest: Authors must acknowledge and declare any sources of funding and potential conflicting interest, such as receiving funds or fees by, or holding stocks and shares in, an organization that may profit or lose through publication of your paper. Declaring a competing interest will not lead to automatic rejection of the paper, but we like to be made aware of it.

19. Page charges: There are no charges for publication in this Journal.

20. Copyright: Accepted manuscripts become the permanent property of the TUMJ and may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without the written permission of the Editor.

21. Peer review process: All manuscripts are considered to be confidential. They are peer-reviewed by at least 2 anonymous reviewers selected by the Editorial Board. The corresponding author is notified as soon as possible of the editor decision to accept, reject, or require modifications. If the manuscript is completely acceptable according to the criteria set forth in these instructions, it is scheduled for the next available issue.

22. Disposal of material: Once published, all copies of the manuscript, correspondence and artwork will be held for 6 months before disposal.

The Final Checklist

The authors must ensure that before submitting the manuscript for publication, they have taken care of the following:

1. Title page should contain title, name of the author/co-authors, their qualifications, designation & institutions they are affiliated with and mailing address for future correspondence, E-mail address, Phone & Fax number.

2. Abstract in Structured format up to 250 words.

3. References mentioned as stated in the Instruction to Authors section.

4. Tables should be typed on separate pages.

6. Make sure for Headings of Tables, their numbers and Captions of illustrations. Don’t repeat the information in tables if it is covered in the text.

7. Photographs / illustrations along with their captions.

8. Manuscript in Triplicate

9. Letter of Undertaking signed by all the authors.

10. Disclosure regarding source of funding and conflict of interest if any besides approval of the study from respective Ethics Committee/Institution Review Board.

11. Covering Letter