Sultan
qaboos university journal for
Scientific Research: Medical
Sciences, a peer-reviewed journal that publishes articles on basic and
applied research in various medical disciplines, is one of the four
academic journals published by Sultan Qaboos University. The Journal is
available both in print and online editions.
The submitted
manuscripts must be based on original research. The Journal accepts
reviews and editorials by invitation from the Editorial Board or in cases
of exceptional merit. Reviews should offer a synthesis of current
knowledge and the author’s own experience, in a field where rapid and
significant progress has been made. The submitted papers should not have
been published, submitted, or accepted for publication elsewhere and the
authors must confirm this in a cover letter to the manuscript (see
appendix). Copyright of the accepted papers will transfer from the authors
to the Journal.
Journal Language
The Journal
publishes papers both in Arabic and in English. British English
spelling and punctuation are adopted for English papers. The accepted
articles will be published in the language in which they were submitted.
All articles will have both English and Arabic titles and abstracts.
Preparing the Manuscript
Manuscripts should
be typed on A4 paper with a 3-cm margin on all sides. The length should
not exceed 30 pages (double spaced and single sided). Use a standard font
(e.g. Times Roman 12 point). Submit one original and two copies of the
manuscript, along with its softcopy in a floppy diskette (or sent as
e-mail attachment). Authors should keep copies of everything submitted.
the title page
should contain only the following: (a) the
title of the paper, (b) the full names of all the authors, (c) their
affiliations and addresses, including e-mail address of the
corresponding author. E-mail address is essential since the Editorial
Office corresponds mostly by e-mail. Include also the name and address of
the institution where the research was performed.
abstract:
As the most widely read part
of a paper, the abstract demands meticulous attention from the author.
Abstracts of original research papers should be clearly divided into
objectives, methods, results and conclusion. Abstracts must be as brief as
possible, not exceeding 250 words. It is the authors’ responsibility to
submit abstracts in both Arabic and English. Below the abstract, provide
three to ten key words for indexing purposes, using words from the heading
list of Index Medicus where possible.
style:
The modern trend to simplify has
affected scientific writing also. Avoid long sentences, jargon and
clichés. When tempted to use a difficult word or complex sentence, see if
it can be replaced by a more easily understood one. Always write keeping
in mind the generalist, rather than the specialist.
sections of the manuscript:
Divide your manuscript to the following major headings: introduction,
methods, results, discussion and conclusion.
citations and references:
The manuscript should include sufficient
details of method and equipment so that another individual could repeat
the work. Details already available in the literature should not be
included, but cited in the references section. List all the authors up to
a maximum of six. The seventh author onwards may be represented by ‘et
al.’ The Journal uses a variation of the Vancouver style of
referencing. Please adopt the exact style as followed by the journal,
including punctuation and abbreviations of journal names (which should be
as per Index Medicus), as in the examples below.
1.
Till J, Shinebourne EA, Rigby ML, Clarke B, Ward DE, Rowland
E. Efficacy and
safety of adenosine in the treatment of supraventricular tachycardia in
infants and children. Br Heart J 1989,
62,
204–11.
2.
Ross GT, Van de Weile RL.
The ovaries. In: Williams RH
Ed, Textbook of Endocrinology Saunders, Philadelphia 1981, 355–9.
3.
Ringsven MK, Bond D.
Gerontology and leadership
skills for nurses (2nd ed.)
Delmar Publishers Albany (NY) 1996.
illustrations:
The quality of illustrations (line drawings
and photographs) must be high enough for good reproduction and should
stand reduction. Photographs should be either 35 mm transparencies or
glossy prints with sharp details. and good contrast. Prints should not be
larger than 13 cm x 18 cm. It is the author’s responsibility to obtain
permission for reproductions from other sources.
All line drawings
should be planned to fit the Journal’s page size (12×18 cm). Lines should
be dark enough and letters should be of professional quality in order to
stand reduction. Do not combine line drawings and photographs into one
illustration. To permit the best scaling, and consequently the best
results, it is advisable to do your drawings in a vector illustration
programme such as Adobe Illustrator or CorelDraw. Furnish the softcopy
along with the hardcopy and indicate the illustration programme used.
Number
illustrations consecutively and provide a brief caption for each
(preferably not exceeding 20 characters), on a separate page. Do not write
captions on the illustrations. On the reverse side of each illustration,
fix a gummed label indicating its number, principal author’s name and top
of the figure. Cite all illustrations in the text and number them
consecutively.
tables and charts:
Each table should be on a separate page. Long tables and those with
calculations are best done using a spreadsheet package such as Excel.
Include tables at the end of the paper along with illustrations. Number
them consecutively in Arabic numerals, with concise titles to each, and
cite them in the text. Charts must always be accompanied by a softcopy in
a floppy, which should also contain the data in the appropriate
spreadsheet or statistical package. Charts provided in uneditable
‘picture’ formats are
not
acceptable.
equations:
Display important equations on separate
lines, and numbered consecutively. Provide equation numbers using Arabic
numerals in parentheses at the right margin of the corresponding equation
to facilitate reference within the text.
abbreviations:
Since abbreviations tend to
make the text difficult to read, avoid them except when essential. The
following guidelines may help:
Define each
abbreviation when first used in the text. Avoid all but the most standard
abbreviations in the abstract. Avoid beginning sentences with
abbreviations and using abbreviations alone for titles, subtitles and
captions.
Use abbreviations,
rather than words, for units and percentages. (e.g., km, mm, kg, l, ml, %
etc).
system of units:
SI (Metric) Units are used in this Journal.
the softcopy:
This should be provided on a 3½´´ floppy
diskette, which should include the text of the paper, graphs and charts if
any, and if possible, illustrations. The word-processed text should
preferably be in Rich-Text Format (RTF). All word processing programmes
offer this facility. Use minimum formatting, since most formatting will be
discarded while typesetting. Restrict formatting to superscripts and
subscripts and what is absolutely essential to indicate different levels
of subheadings. Use true superscripts and subscripts and not
‘raised/lowered’ characters. The label of the diskette should mention the
title, the author(s), and the programmes used, with their version numbers.
Review Process
The
Editorial Office of the Journal checks each submitted manuscript for
general quality, suitability for the Journal, and whether it conforms to
the accepted format. If found lacking, the manuscript may be returned to
the author for revision. Delays can be avoided if the author fully
complies with this guide. The Editorial Board reviews the shortlisted
manuscripts, and forwards suitable ones to expert reviewers. Comments and
suggestions from the reviewers are conveyed to the authors. The amended
manuscripts resubmitted by the authors are once again subjected to expert
review, if necessary, before final acceptance.
Editing
Manuscripts
selected for publication are edited by the Editorial Office of the Journal
for brevity, clarity, grammar, spelling and style. When the editing is
extensive, with consequent danger of altered meanings, the manuscript is
returned to the author for corrections and approval. Once the manuscript
has been accepted for publication, the authors should resubmit one printed
copy and one softcopy of the revised manuscript. The text, tables and
illustrations in the diskette should correspond directly to the printed
copy as submitted. Charts should be provided in MS Excel or Lotus format.
Charts supplied as non-editable ‘pictures’ are not acceptable.
Proofs and Reprints
One set of galley
proofs will be provided to the corresponding author for typographical
checking only. It should be returned within 72 hours of receipt.
Since high quality PDF versions of the paper can be downloaded and
printed from the Journal’s web site www.squ.edu.om/mj,
physical offprints are not provided.
Checklist for authors
·
Is a signed cover
letter included?
·
An active e-mail
address provided?
·
Is the abstract
true to the Journal’s style?
·
Are keywords and
running title (for inside pages) included?
·
Are Arabic
translations of title, author-names and abstract provided? (This is
essential if at least one of the authors is Arabic speaking. The Arabic
version can also be given later, once the paper has been accepted for
publication.)
·
Are references in
the Journal’s exact style?
·
Are tables and
illustrations separate from the text?
·
Is a softcopy
included?
·
Are softcopies of
charts and graphs in editable Excel/Lotus format, and not as embedded
pictures?
·
Have all sources
been acknowledged and copyright issues resolved?
(For any clarification on the above, please e-mail mjournal@squ.edu.om
or ring 513333 Ext: 3443.)
Form of cover letter
To,
The Editor
Sultan Qaboos
University Journal for
Scientific Research: Medical Sciences
College of Medicine
Sultan Qaboos
University
Post Box: 35, Postal
Code: 123
Sultanate of
Oman.
Dated:……………………….
Dear Sir,
Please find enclosed
my/our paper titled …………………………. Please consider it for publication in
SQU Journal for Scientific Research: Medical Sciences. I/we certify
that this paper has neither not been published nor has been submitted for
publication elsewhere, and will not be submitted for publication elsewhere
without written permission from you.
Yours faithfully,
Name & Address Signature
1st author
2nd author
3rd author
4th author
Address of first/Corresponding author............
E-mail address for correspondence ................
For
guidelines to publish abstracts of conferences,