Author Guidelines
AUTHORSHIP
All named authors must give consent to publication. Authorship should be based only on substantial contribution to: (i) conception, design, analysis and interpretation of data; (ii) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; (iii) final approval of the version to be published. All three of these conditions must be met (Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals; www.icmje.org/index.html). CONFLICT OF INTEREST
Authors must declare all sources of support for the research and any association with the product or subject that may constitute conflict of interest. PROTECTION OF PATIENT’S RIGHTS TO PRIVACY
Identifying information should not be published in written descriptions, photographs, and pedigrees unless the information is essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent or guardian) gives informed written consent for publication. Informed consent for this purpose requires that the patient be shown the manuscript to be published. (www.icmje.org) ETHNIC CLASSIFICATION
Work that is based on or contains reference to ethnic classification must indicate the rationale for this. MANUSCRIPTS
Short items are more likely to appeal to our readers and therefore to be accepted for publication. Please provide a word count for all submissions.
Original articles of 3 000 words or less, with up to 6 tables or illustrations, should normally report observations or research of relevance to clinical medicine. References should preferably be limited to no more than 15.
Short reports or scientific letters, which include case reports, side effects of drugs and brief or negative research findings should be 1000 words or less, with 1 table or illustration and no more than 6 references.
Editorials, Opinions, Issues in Medicine, etc. should be about 800 words and are welcome, but unless invited, will be subjected to the SAMJ peer review process.
Review articles are rarely accepted unless invited.
Letters to the editor, if intended for the correspondence column, should be marked 'for publication', signed by all authors and presented in triple spacing. Letters should be no longer than 400 words with only one illustration or table.
Obituaries should not exceed 400 words and may be accompanied by a photograph.
MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION
1. Please send your manuscript on disc accompanied by three printouts, in triple spacing, with wide margins and paginated.
2. Research articles should have a structured abstract not exceeding 250 words (50 for short reports) comprising: Objectives, Design, Setting, Subjects, Outcome measures, Results and Conclusions.
3. Refer to articles in recent issues for guidance on the presentation of headings and subheadings.
4. Abbreviations should be spelt out when first used in the text and thereafter used consistently.
5. Scientific measurements should be expressed in SI units except: blood pressure should be given in mmHg and haemoglobin values in g/dl.
6. If in doubt, refer to ‘uniform requirements’ above.
ILLUSTRATIONS
1. Figures consist of all material that cannot be set in type, such as photographs and line drawings.
2. Tables and legends for illustrations should appear on separate sheets and should be clearly identified.
3. Line drawings should be arranged to conserve vertical space. Note that reduction to 80 mm for a single column or 170 mm for double columns should not render lettering illegible. Explanations should be included in the legend and not on the figure itself.
4. Figure numbers should be clearly marked on the back of prints and the top of illustrations should be indicated.
5. If any tables or illustrations submitted have been published elsewhere, written consent to republication should be obtained by the author from the copyright holder and the author(s).
6. A limited number of illustrations are free at the discretion of the editor. Colour illustrations are encouraged but are charged to the author. A quote will be provided on request. Consider sponsorship.
REFERENCES
References should be inserted in the text as superior numbers and should be listed at the end of the article in numerical and not in alphabetical order.
Authors are responsible for verification of references from the original sources.
References should be set out in the Vancouver style and approved abbreviations of journal titles used; consult the List of Journals in Index Medicus for these details.
Names and initials of all authors should be given unless there are more than six, in which case the first three names should be given followed by et al. First and last page numbers should be given.
Journal references should appear thus:
1.Price NC. Importance of asking about glaucoma. BMJ 1983; 286: 349-350.
Book references should be set out as follows:
1.Jeffcoate N. Principles of Gynaecology. 4th ed. London: Butterworth, 1975: 96-101.
2. Weinstein L, Swartz MN. Pathogenic properties of invading microorganisms. In: Sodeman WA jun, Sodeman WA, eds. Pathologic Physiology: Mechanisms of Disease. Philadelphia: WB Saunders, 1974: 457-472.
Manuscripts accepted but not yet published can be included as references followed by (in press).
Unpublished observations and personal communications may be cited in the text, but not in the reference list.
GALLEY PROOFS
Galley proofs will be forwarded to the author before publication and if not returned within 2 weeks will be regarded as approved. Pleas note that alterations to typeset articles are costly and will be charged to the authors.
CHANGES OF ADDRESS
Please notify the Editorial Department of any address changes so that proofs and invoices may be mailed without delay.
REPRINTS
An order form for reprints, with a price list, will be sent to the author as soon as an article has been placed.
PD POINTS
Authors can earn up to 15 CPD points for published articles. Certificates will be provided on request after the article has been published.
