Guidelines for Authors

Author Guidelines

Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran

(Updated January 2017)

Aim and Scope

 The Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran (MJIRI), is a quarterly and an editorially independent publication owned by Iran University of Medical Sciences and aims to be a publication of international repute for reporting current regional and international adventures in all aspects of the medicine. MJIRI welcomes contribu­tions in this field in the form of original research articles, systematic reviews and meta-analyses, brief communications, and debate articles. The Journal seeks to provide its readers with the highest quality scientific information published through a process of careful peer reviews and editorial comments. All pub­lications are in English.

  The following guidelines refer to the MJIRI requirements for receiving your manu­scripts for possible publication. Relying on this guideline speeds up the process of evaluation and publication of the submitted paper. We, regretfully, declare the rejec­tion of those contributions that deviate from the Journal Guidelines.

  The MJIRI scopes on major clinical and non-clinical topics in medicine, as well as themes in paraclinical and health sciences.   

MJIRI focuses mainly on following types of study:

  1. Original research

The headlines of original research include:

Introduction: State the purpose of the article and summarize the rationale for the study or observation. Give only strictly pertinent references and do not include data or conclusions from the work being reported.

Methods: Describe your selection of the observational or experimental subjects (patients or laboratory animals, including controls) clearly. Identify the age, sex, and other important characteristics of the subjects.

Identify the methods, apparatus (give the manufacturer’s name and address in parentheses), and proce­dures in sufficient detail to allow other workers to reproduce the results. Give references to established methods, including statistical methods; provide references and brief descriptions for methods that have been published but are not well known; describe new or substantially modified methods, give reasons for using them, and evaluate their limitations. Identify precisely all drugs and chemicals used, including generic name(s), dose(s), and route(s) of administration.

Reports of randomized clinical trials should present information on all major study elements, includ­ing the protocol (study population, interventions or exposures, outcomes, and the rationale for statistical analysis), assignment of interventions (methods of randomization, concealment of allocation to treatment groups), and the method of masking (blinding).

Results: Present your results or findings in logical sequence in the text, tables, and illustrations. Do not repeat in the text all the data in the tables or illustrations; emphasize or summarize only important observations.

Discussion: The behavior of models or specimens should be discussed. It is useful to begin the discussion by sum­marizing briefly the main findings, then explore possible mechanisms or explanations for these findings, compare and contrast the results with other relevant studies, state the limitations of the study, and explore the implications of the findings for future research and for clinical practice.

Conclusion: Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that follow from them. Link the conclusions with the goals of the study but avoid unqualified statements and conclusions not com­pletely supported by the data. In particular, authors should avoid making statements on economic benefits and costs unless their manuscript includes economic data and analyses. Avoid claiming priority and allud­ing to work that has not been completed. State new hypotheses when warranted, but clearly label them as such. Recommendations, when appropriate, may be included.

  1. Systematic Review Articles

Meta-analysis, systematic reviews are welcome. Review articles’ headings are including: background, review of the literature, discussion, and conclusion.

Submissions of narrative review articles are only expected from experts in the fields.

  1. Letter to the Editor

This contribution to MJIRI should be totally 1-2 pages involving announcement of

innovations, establishments, achievements, and continuation or discontinuation of a method/procedure in the Journal fields. The Letter begins with a suitable concise title and then furthers with an introductory paragraph on the issue's background or author's intention to such contribution.

  1. Debate Article

Following the style of leading medical journals such as the British Medical Journal, MJIRI added 'de­bate articles' to the list of accepted articles for publishing in the journal. Debate articles are narrative texts in which an expert author informs and promotes debate on important and complex issues in medicine, or health policy system. Peculiarly, we consider those articles with international, regional or Iranian national relevance which are important for a wide range of readers. Such articles do not merely report a special re­search and usually contain ideas and opinions of author(s); they can report on all aspects of the subject such as sociological or ethical issues.

Manuscripts for Debate articles submitted to MJIRI should comprise the following sections:

  • it should be short and contain key word(s) of the article's content

Précis: this one-paragraph summary should state the article's key subject. A structured abstract (like other types of MJIRI articles) is not required.

Main text: it should not exceed 2500 words (excluding texts in tables, illustrations as well as refer­ences). Main text begins with a clear 100-150 word introduction explaining what the article is about and emphasizing its significance. Utilization of subheadings is recommended to break up the main text and explain any technical terminology. Please ensure that the evidence for any key statements is explicit and referenced, and that the strength of the evidence is clear-stating whether it comes from, for example, pub­lished trials, systematic reviews, observational studies, or expert opinion. Up to three tables, or illustra­tions are appreciated to enrich the text and add to or substantiate key points stated in the body of the article

  • : Message(s) of the utmost importance should be expressed in a wrap-up conclusion, max­imally in two paragraphs.
  • : no more than 20 references in Vancouver style

  1. Brief Communication

Manuscripts that report interesting and important developments related to the practice of health sciences but do not aim to be comprehensive or research oriented in nature may be published as “Brief communication”.

While brief communications may not present a complete study or comprehensive review of a topic, they should nonetheless adhere to a high standard of quality and rigor of thought. Brief communication submissions should generally not exceed 1,800 words, excluding illustrations. Only 1 illustration can be included. Abstract is not necessary for a brief communication. Other specifications related to technical requirements, title page, authorship, acknowledgments, and references should agree with section two of “MJIRI Guidelines for Authors”.

Contribution to MJIRI

 1. Issues to Consider prior to Submitting a Manuscript

  1.1. Redundant or Duplicate Publication

  Redundant or duplicate publication is publication of a paper that overlaps sisnificantly with one al­ready published.

  Readers of primary source periodicals deserve to be able to trust that what they are reading is original unless there is a clear statement that the article is being republished by the choice of the author and editor. The bases of this position are international copyright laws, ethical conduct, and cost-effective use of re­sources.

  This policy does not preclude the journal considering a paper that has been rejected by another journal, or a complete report that follows publication of a preliminary report, such as an abstract or poster dis­played for colleagues at a professional meeting. Nor does it prevent journals considering a paper that has been presented at a scientific meeting but not published in full or that is being considered for publication in a proceedings or similar format. Press reports of scheduled meetings will not usually be regarded as breaches of this rule, but such reports should not be amplified by additional data or copies of tables and il­lustrations.

  When submitting a paper, the author should always make a full statement to the editor about all sub­missions and previous reports that might be regarded as redundant or duplicate publication of the same or very similar work. The author should alert the editor if the work includes subjects about which a previous report has been published. Any such work should be referred to and referenced in the new paper. Copies of such material should be included with the submitted paper to help the editor decide how to handle the matter.

  If redundant or duplicate publication is attempted or occurs without such notification, authors should expect editorial action to be taken. At the least, prompt rejection of the submitted manuscript should be expected.

  Preliminary release, usually to public media, of scientific information described in a paper that has been accepted but not yet published violates the policies of many journals. In a few cases, and only by arrangement with the editor, preliminary release of data may be acceptable-for example, if there is a pub­lic health emergency.

  1.2. Protection of Patients’ Rights to Privacy

  Patients have a right to privacy that should not be infringed without in­formed consent. 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 written informed consent for publica­tion. Informed consent for this pur­pose requires that the patient be shown the manuscript to be published.

  Identifying details should be omit­ted if they are not essential, but patient data should never be altered or falsi­fied in an attempt to attain anonymity. Complete anonymity is difficult to achieve, and informed consent should be obtained if there is any doubt. For example, masking the eye region in photographs of patients is inadequate protection of anonymity.

2. Requirements for Submission of Manuscripts

  2.1. Summary of Technical Requirements

  1. Double space all parts of manuscripts; 2. Begin each section or component on a new page; 3. Review the sequence: title page, abstract and keywords, text, acknowledgments, references, tables (each on separate page); 4. Illustrations, unmounted prints, should be no larger than 203 x 254 mm. (8 x 10 inches); 5. Include permission to reproduce previously published material or to use illustrations that may identify human subjects; 6. State clearly conflict of interest and ethical issue in a cover letter; 7. Prepare a full copy of article ; 8. Keep copies of everything submitted; 9. Having filled out and signed MJIRI Article Record Form in advance of final submision; 10. Checking the quality of submitted images, illustrations, graphs, charts, diagrams, tables and any other object related to the submision. These formats for images, graphs, illustrations include high resolution (300 dpi or more) PCX/jpeg/TIFF/png/Bmp. Tables which are designed in Microsoft Word Software must be submitted in original format (i.e. doc). Charts and tables that are released by statistical softwares such as SPSS must also be submitted in Word or images’ formats, but Word format (i. e. doc) is preferred - for this case you may export your tables and charts directly from Statistical Machines like SPSS to Word (XP or 2007). Colored images and illustrations must be submitted in original high quality colors. Any alteration or change in the images’ colors must be supported with a notification at the image description clarifying the mainspring. Grayscale (black and white) images and other illustrations should also have high quality resolution and suitable lucidity for conveying the most important details; 11. Be certain to include a camera-ready version of the article; 11. Name the files clearly; 12. Send only the latest version of the manuscript via MJIRI site or email.

   2.2. Manuscript’s File Format

  The manuscript should be prepared exclusively in Microsoft Word doc format version 2010 or later.  

  2.3. Title Page

  The title page for both original research and case reports should carry:

  The title of the paper, which should be concise but informative. This title should be written with normal writing style (Not all capital) and only the initial of the specific names should be capitalized;

  2) The name by which each author is known, with his or her highest academic degree(s) and institutional affiliation. This also should be written with normal style including the first name followed by surname(s). Individuals should be separated by a coma;

  The name of the department(s) and institution(s) to which the work should be attributed;

  Disclaimers, if any;

  The name, address and affiliation of all authors. The address includes the postal address, telephone and fax numbers followed by a current email address;

  Source(s) of support in the form of grants, equipment, drugs, or all of these; and,

  A short running headline of no more than 30 characters (count letters and spaces) at the foot of the title page.

  2.4. Authors

  All persons designated as authors should qualify for authorship. Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the content.

  Authorship credit should be based only on substantial contributions to 1) conception and design, or analysis and interpretation of data; and to 2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and on 3) final approval of the version to be published. Conditions 1, 2, and 3 must all be met. Participation solely in the acquisition of funding or the collection of data does not justify authorship. General supervision of the research group is not sufficient for authorship. Any part of an article critical to its main conclusions must be the responsibility of at least one author.

  Increasingly, multicenter trials are attributed to a corporate author. All members of the group who are named as authors, either in the authorship position below the title or in a footnote, should fully meet the above criteria for authorship. Group members who do not meet these criteria should be listed, with their permission, in the Acknowledgments.

  The order of authorship should be a joint decision of the coauthors. Because the order is assigned in different ways, its meaning cannot be inferred accurately unless it is stated by the authors. Authors may wish to explain the order of authorship in a footnote.

  2.5. Abstract and Keywords

  The submission should carry an abstract of no more than 250 words for structured abstract in original research articles. This abstract should state:1. Background and objective(s) (originality and purpose(s) of the study or investigation), 2. Method(s) (selection of study subjects or laboratory animals; observa­tional and analytical methods), 3. Results (giving specific data and their statistical significance, if possi­ble), and, 4. Conclusion (emphasizing new and important aspects of the study or observations).

  For review articles an unstructured abstract maximum to 150 words is reasonble.

  Below the abstract authors should provide 3 to 10 keywords.

  2.6. Knowledge Translation (KT) section

In this section the authors are assuring the readers that the research is deliverable to its right audience. For such a goal, authors should, very briefly in about 50 words, state that “What is already known in this topic” and then in another short paragraph (max 50 words) state that what “This article adds to” the previously known knowledge. All MJIRI’s published articles starting from 2017 have a such section appearing at the bottom of the articles’ first page

 2.7. Statistics

  Describe statistical methods with enough detail to enable a knowledgeable reader with access to the original data to verify the reported results. Discuss the eligibility of experimental subjects. Give details about randomization. Describe the methods for and success of any blinding of observations. Report complications of treatment. Give numbers of observations. Report losses to observation (such as dropouts from a clinical trial). Put a general description of methods in the Methods section. Define sta­tistical terms, abbreviations, and most symbols.

  2.8. Units of Measurement

  Measurements of length, height, weight, and volume should be reported in metric units (meter, kilogram, or liter) or their decimal multiples. Temperatures should be given in Celsius. Blood pressures should be given in millimeters of mercury.

  All hematologic and clinical chemistry measurements should be reported in the metric system in terms of the International System of Units (SI).

  2.9. Tables and Illustrations (Figures)

  Type, insert or print out each Table with double spacing on appropriate place in the article. Do not submit tables as photographs. Number tables consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text and supply a brief caption for each. Give each column a short or abbreviated heading. Place explanatory matter in footnotes, not in the heading. Explain in footnotes all nonstandard abbreviations that are used in each table. Captions or table legends should appear at the top of the tables.

  Identify statistical measures of variations, such as standard deviation and standard error of the mean.

  Be sure that each Table is cited in the text.

  If you use data from another published or unpublished source, obtain permission and acknowledge them fully.

  The use of too many tables in relation to the length of the text may produce difficulties in the layout of pages. You could include up to 10 illustrations (including images, graphs, charts, diagrams, and tables) with your submitted article considering the format requirements.

  Submit the required number of complete sets of figures. Figures should be professionally drawn and photographed; freehand or typewritten lettering is unacceptable. Instead of original drawings, x-ray films, and other material, insert sharp, glossy, black-and-white photographic prints, usually 127*173 mm (5*7 inches) but no larger than 203* 254 mm (8* 10 inches). Letters, numbers, and symbols should be clear and even throughout and of sufficient size that when reduced for publication each item will still be legible.

  Each Figure should have a label pasted on its bottom indicating the number of the figure and author’s name.

  Photographs should have internal scale markers. Symbols, arrows, or letters used in photographs should contrast with the background.

  Figures should be numbered consecutively according to the order in which they have been first cited in the text. If a figure has been published previously, acknowledge the original source and submit written permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the material. Permission is required irrespective of authorship or publisher except for documents in the public domain.

  Legends for Illustrations

  Type or insert legends for illustrations using double spacing specifying each with Arabic numerals corresponding to the illustrations. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the illustrations, identify and explain each one clearly in the legend. Explain the internal scale and identify the method of staining in photographs.

  2.10. Abbreviations and Symbols

  Use only standard abbreviations. Avoid abbreviations 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.

  2.11. Acknowledgments

  Acknowledgments should specify 1) contributions that need acknowledging but do not justify author­ship, such as general support by a departmental chair; 2) acknowledgments of technical help; 3) ac­knowledgments of financial and material support, which should specify the nature of the support; and 4) relationships that may pose a conflict of interest.

  Acknowledgements are mentioned in a sole paragraph maximum to 30 words. Conflict of interest and financial issues (if any) must be inserted after acknowledgement paragraph. Persons who have con­tributed intellectually to the paper but whose contributions do not justify authorship may be named and their function or contribution described-for example, “scientific adviser,” “critical review of study pro­posal,” “data collection,” or “participation in clinical trial.” Such persons must have given their permis­sion to be named. Authors are responsible for obtaining written permission from persons acknowledged

  by name, because readers may infer their endorsement of the data and conclusions.

  2.12. Conflict of Interest, Financial and Ethical Issues

  According to the COPE requirements, any instance of conflicting interests must be noted. Any violation will be considered as misconduct.

   Manuscripts must be accompanied by a covering letter signed by all coauthors. This must include 1) in­formation on prior or duplicate publication or submission elsewhere of any part of the work as defined earlier in this document; 2) a statement of financial or other relationships that might lead to a conflict of interest 3) a statement that the manuscript has been read and approved by all the authors, that the require­ments for authorship as stated earlier in this document have been met, and that each author believes that the manuscript represents honest work; and 4) the name, address, and telephone number of author(s), and specifing an author as corresponding person for communicating with the other authors about revisions and final approval of the proofs.

  2.13. Copyrighted and Reprint Materials

  The manuscript must be accompanied by copies of any permission to reproduce published material, to use illustrations or report information about identifiable people, or to name people for their contributions.

  2.14.  Statement of Sole Submission

  The author(s) must guarantee that once their material has been accepted for publication by the MJIRI, they will not make submission of the same material or portions thereof to another journal before publica­tion in MJIRI.

  The editors also require that the author(s) be responsible for the linguistic and grammatical editing of their manuscript before submission to the Journal. Regretfully, sending such papers to peer reviewers will be delayed until the grammatical or linguistic errors are corrected by the author(s).

  2.15. Citations and References

  References should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they are first mentioned in the text. Identify references in text, tables, and legends by Arabic numerals in square parentheses.

  Use the style of the examples below, which are based on the formats used by the NLM in Index Medicus.

Avoid using abstracts as references. References to papers accepted but not yet published should be des­ignated as “in press”; authors should obtain written permission to cite such papers as well as verification that they have been accepted for publication. Information from manuscripts submitted but not accepted should be cited in the text as “unpublished observations” with written permission from the source.

  Avoid citing a “personal communication” unless it provides essential information not available from a public source, in which case the name of the person and date of communication should be cited in paren­theses in the text. The references must be verified by the author(s) against the original documents.

  

   **All references must follow the Vancouver style including the following items:

A number in parentheses is allocated to a source in the order in which it is cited in the text. If the source is re­ferred to again, the same number is used.

  Example: ...as one author has put it “the darkest days were still ahead” (1): which is well documented in the literature [2-5]. This proves that “the darkest days were still ahead” (1).

  Note: the “(2-5)” refers to references 2 to 5 (i.e. 2,3,4, and 5) but if you like to mention references 2 AND 5 you should cite them in text as “(2,5)”. Numbers should be inserted to the left of colons, semi­colons, and full stops. The author’s name can also be integrated into the text; eg. Scholtz (2) has argued that...

 Articles in journals

  1. Standard journal article

  List the first six authors followed by et al.

  Example: Vega KJ, Pina I, Krevsky B. Heart transplantation is associated with an increased risk for pancreatobil­iary disease. Ann Intern Med 1996 Jun 1; 124 (11):980-3.

  More than six authors:

  Example: Parkin DM, Clayton D, Black RJ, Masuyer E, Friedl HP, Ivanov E, et al. Childhood leukaemia in Eu­rope after Chernobyl: 5 year follow-up. Br J Cancer 1996; 73:1006- 12.

  2. Organization as author

  Example: The Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand. Clinical exercise stress testing. Safety and perform­ance guidelines. Med J Aust 1996; 164:282-4.

  3. No author given

  Example: Cancer in South Africa [editorial]. S Afr Med J 1994; 84:15.

  4. Article not in English

  Example: Ryder TE, Haukeland EA, Solhaug JH. Bilateral infrapatellar seneruptur hos tidligere frisk kvinne. Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen 1996; 116:41-2.

  5. Volume with supplement

  Example: Shen HM, Zhang QF. Risk assessment of nickel carcinogenicity and occupational lung cancer. Environ Health Perspect 1994; 102 Suppl 1:275-82.

  6. Issue with supplement

  Example: Payne DK, Sullivan MD, Massie MJ. Women’s psychological reactions to breast cancer. Semin Oncol 1996; 23(1 Suppl 2):89-97.

  7. Volume with part

  Example: Ozben T, Nacitarhan S, Tuncer N. Plasma and urine sialic acid in non-insulin dependent diabetes melli­tus. Ann Clin Biochem 1995; 32(Pt 3):303-6.

  8. Issue with part

  Example: Poole GH, Mills SM. One hundred consecutive cases of flap lacerations of the leg in ageing patients. N Z Med J 1994; 107(986 Pt 1):377-8.

  9. Issue with no volume

  Example: Turan I, Wredmark T, Fellander-Tsai L. Arthroscopic ankle arthrodesis in rheumatoid arthritis. Clin Or­thop 1995; (320):110-4.

  10. No issue or volume

  Example: Browell DA, Lennard TW. Immunologic status of the cancer patient and the effects of blood transfu­sion on antitumor responses. Curr Opin Gen Surg 1993:325-33.

  11. Pagination in Roman numerals

  Example: Fisher GA, Sikic BI. Drug resistance in clinical oncology and hematology. Introduction. Hematol On-col Clin North Am 1995 Apr; 9(2):xi-xii.

  12. Type of article indicated as needed

  Example 1: Enzensberger W, Fischer PA. Metronome in Parkinson’s disease [letter]. Lancet 1996; 347:1337.

  Example 2: Clement J, De Bock R. Hematological complications of hantavirus nephropathy (HVN) [abstract]. Kidney Int 1992; 42:1285.

  13. Article containing retraction

  Example: Garey CE, Schwarzman AL, Rise ML, Seyfried TN. Ceruloplasmin gene defect associated with epilep­sy in EL mice [retraction of Garey CE, Schwarzman AL, Rise ML, Seyfried TN. In: Nat Genet 1994; 6:426-31]. Nat Genet 1995; 11:104.

  14. Article retracted

  Liou GI, Wang M, Matragoon S. Precocious IRBP gene expression during mouse development [retracted in In­vest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 1994; 35:3127]. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 1994; 35:1083-8.

  15. Article with published erratum

  Hamlin JA, Kahn AM. Herniography in symptomatic patients following inguinal hernia repair [published erra­tum appears in West J Med 1995; 162:278]. West J Med 1995; 162:28-31.

  

Books and Other Monographs

  16. Personal author(s)

  Example: Ringsven MK, Bond D. Gerontology and leadership skills for nurses. 2nd ed. Albany (NY): Delmar Publishers; 1996. pp. 45-79.

  17. Editor(s), compiler(s) as author

  Example: Norman IJ, Redfern SJ, editors. Mental health care for elderly people. New York: Churchill Living-stone; 1996. pp. 4-7.

  18. Organization as author and publisher

  Example: Institute of Medicine (US). Looking at the future of the Medicaid program. Washington: The Institute; 1992. pp. 65-78.

  19. Chapter in a book

  Example: Phillips SJ, Whisnant JP. Hypertension and stroke. In: Laragh JH, Brenner BM, editors. Hypertension: pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management. 2nd ed. New York: Raven Press; 1995. pp. 465-78.

  20. Conference proceedings

  Example: Kimura J, Shibasaki H, editors. Recent advances in clinical neurophysiology. Proceedings of the 10th International Congress of EMG and Clinical Neurophysiology; 1995 Oct 15-19; Kyoto, Japan. Amsterdam: Elsevi­er; 1996.

  21. Conference paper

  Example: Bengtsson S, Solheim BG. Enforcement of data protection, privacy and security in medical informatics. In: Lun KC, Degoulet P, Piemme TE, Rienhoff O, editors. MEDINFO 92. Proceedings of the 7th World Congress on Medical Informatics; 1992 Sep 6-10; Geneva, Switzerland. Amsterdam: North-Holland; 1992. p. 1561-5.

  22. Scientific or technical report

  Issued by funding/sponsoring agency:

  Example: Smith P, Golladay K. Payment for durable medical equipment billed during skilled nursing facility stays. Final report. Dallas (TX): Dept. of Health and Human Services (US), Office of Evaluation and Inspections; 1994 Oct. Report No.: HHSI-GOEI69200860.

  Issued by performing agency:

  Example: Field MJ, Tranquada RE, Feasley JC, editors. Health services research: work force and educational is­sues. Washington: National Academy Press; 1995. Contract No.: AHCPR282942008. Sponsored by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research.

  23. Dissertation

  Example: Kaplan SJ. Post-hospital home health care: the elderly’s access and utilization [dissertation]. St. Louis: Washington Univ.; 1995.

  24. Patent

  Example: Larsen CE, Trip R, Johnson CR, inventors; Novoste Corporation, assignee. Methods for procedures re­lated to the electrophysiology of the heart. US patent 5,529,067. 1995 Jun 25.

  

Other Published Materials

  25. Newspaper article

  Example: Lee G. Hospitalizations tied to ozone pollution: study estimates 50,000 admissions annually. The Wash­ington Post 1996 Jun 21; Sect. A:3 (col. 5).

  1. Audiovisual material Example: HIV+/AIDS: the facts and the future [videocassette]. St. Louis: Mosby-Year Book; 1995.

  2. Legal material

  Public law:

  Example: Preventive Health Amendments of 1993, Pub. L. No. 103-183, 107 Stat. 2226 (Dec. 14, 1993).

  Unenacted bill:

  Example: Medical Records Confidentiality Act of 1995, S. 1360, 104th Cong., 1st Sess. (1995).

  Code of Regulations:

  Example: Informed Consent, 42 C.F.R. Sect. 441.257 (1995).

  Hearing:

  Example: Increased Drug Abuse: the Impact on the Nation’s Emergency Rooms: Hearings Before the Subcomm. on Human Resources and Intergovernmental Relations of the House Comm. on Government Operations, 103rd Cong., 1st Sess. (May 26, 1993).

  28. Map

  Example: North Carolina. Tuberculosis rates per 100,000 population, 1990 [demographic map]. Raleigh: North Carolina Dept. of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Div. of Epidemiology; 1991.

  1. Holy scriptures

  2. Dictionary and similar references

  Example: The Quran. Othman Taha version.: Dar-al-Ghoran Publishing House; 1995. Maryam Surah, 1-18.

  Example: Stedman’s medical dictionary. 26th ed. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins; 1995. Apraxia; p. 119-20.

  31. Classical material

  Example: The Winter’s Tale: act 5, scene 1, lines 13-16. The complete works of William Shakespeare. London: Rex; 1973.

  

Unpublished Materials

  32. In press

  Example: Leshner AI. Molecular mechanisms of cocaine addiction. N Engl J Med. In press 1996.

 Electronic Materials

  33. Journal article in electronic format

  Example: Morse SS. Factors in the emergence of infectious diseases. Emerg Infect Dis [serial online] 1995 Jan-Mar [cited 1996 Jun 5]; 1(1): [24 screens]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/ ncidod/ EID/eid.htm

  34. Monograph in electronic format

  Example: CDI, clinical dermatology illustrated [monograph on CD-ROM]. Reeves JRT, Maibach H. CMEA Multimedia Group, producers. 2nd ed. Version 2.0. San Diego: CMEA; 1995.

  35. Computer file

  Example: Hemodynamics III: the ups and downs of hemodynamics [computer program]. Version 2.2. Orlando (FL): Computerized Educational Systems; 1993.

  36. Web site / homepage

  Elements of a citation: Author/Editor/Organisation’s name. Title of the page [homepage on the Internet]. Place of publication: Publisher’s name; [updated yr month day; cited yr month day]. Available from: (URL)

  Example: HeartCentreOnline [homepage on the Internet]. Boca Raton, FL: HeartCentreOnline, Inc.; c2000-2004 [updated 2004 May 23; cited 2004 Oct 15]. Available from: http://www.heartcenteronline.com/

  37. Web Site/part of a Homepage:

  Example: American Medical Association [homepage on the Internet]. Chicago: The American Medical Associa­tion; c1995-2002 [cited 2005 Apr 20]. Group and Faculty Practice Physicians; [about 2 screens]. Available from: http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/1736.html.

3. Sending the manuscript to the Journal

 Authors are encouraged to submit their valuable manuscript electronically to the Journal Management System available at http://mjiri.iums.ac.ir. For any assistance please feel free to contact The MJIRI Executive editor MS. Sharif via email mjiri@iums.ac.ir.

4. Quality Control and Peer-Reviewing process

  4.1. Checking Plagiarism

Authors are encouraged to follow the ethical issues while writing and they are highly advised to check their final manuscript for any instance of plagiarism in advance of submission. There are a lot of free (such as quetext.com) and per subscription (such as iThenticate) services which may help authors.

Authors are hinted that all received manuscripts will be checked in iThenticate for any instance of plagiarism and suspicious materials will be communicated following the report of iThenticate.

  4.2. Peer reviewing process

 Each submission to MJIRI passes through a rigorous quality control and peer-review evaluation process before receiving a decision. Initially, articles which meet the minimum requirements for submission (such as including relevant title, abstract, the necessary descriptions of funding, privacy, ethics, statements of original work, having MJIRI Record Form completed and signed by author(s), and so on,) are looked over by the executive manager. Once passed quality control, articles with good possibilities will be sent out for peer-review.

  The peer-review process is designed to maintain scientifically credible information and research standards.

  For a most targeted peer-reviewing process, authors are encouraged to enclose in their Cover Letter at least three in-field researchers/physicians, but the MJIRI is not obliged to use that suggestions. Papers are critiqued and approved by at least two experts prior to being accepted for publication. If these reviews are positive, the article may be accepted immediately by the editorial board, or may be referred back to the authors to address any comments by the reviewers. If one review is positive and one is negative, a third peer review is scheduled and the editor decision is based upon the third reviewer's comment. However, if the two conducted reviews are negative, a rejection notification will be sent to the corresponding author. This notification means that the submitted work has not minimum requirement for possible publication in the MJIRI. Nonetheless, other submissions by the same authors to the MJIRI are welcomed.