Article Retraction Policy

1. General Principle

The Ege Journal of Medical Sciences adheres to the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in all article retraction procedures.
Retraction requests may be initiated only by the author(s) or the Editorial Board, and the entire process must be documented in writing.
In every case, the principles of transparency, accountability, and strict adherence to ethical standards are observed.

2. Retraction of Manuscripts Under Review

Authors wishing to withdraw a manuscript under peer review must:
• Complete the official Article Retraction Form available on the journal’s website,
• Obtain the wet-ink signatures of all authors,
• Send the scanned and signed form to egetipbilimleridergisi@gmail.com via e-mail.
The Editorial Board reviews the withdrawal request and provides a written response within 15 days.
Manuscripts for which copyright has already been transferred to the journal cannot be withdrawn without the approval of the Editorial Board.
If the withdrawal request is not approved, the authors may not submit the same manuscript to another journal for consideration.

3. Retraction of Published or Online-First Articles

For articles that have already been published or are in online first (early view) status, authors must:
• Complete and sign the Article Retraction Form,
• Submit the scanned copy via e-mail to the Editorial Board,
• Await an official written response within 15 days.
If the retraction request involves allegations of ethical misconduct, copyright infringement, or plagiarism, the Editorial Board initiates a preliminary inquiry and ethical review in accordance with COPE guidelines.
During this process:
• All relevant evidence is collected,
• Statements or explanations are requested from the author(s) and, when necessary, from their affiliated institutions,
• Independent ethical opinions may be sought if deemed appropriate.
If copyright infringement, plagiarism, or serious ethical misconduct is confirmed, the Editorial Board will formally retract the article and issue all required notifications.

4. Retraction Notice and Publication Format

For articles retracted due to confirmed ethical violations or author-initiated withdrawal approved by the Editorial Board, the following actions are taken within 15 days:

1. Retraction Announcement

Information about the retracted article is published in the next issue of the journal (both electronic and print versions) at the end of the table of contents with the statement:
“Retracted: [Article Title]”

2. Retraction Statement

Instead of the article’s abstract and full text, a short retraction notice is published, including:
o the reason(s) for retraction,
o supporting evidence or references,
o the authors’ institutional affiliations (if applicable),
o and the ORCID IDs of all authors.

3. Linking and Transparency

The retraction notice is linked to the original article to maintain the integrity of the publication record.
The previous version of the article will display the statement:
“This article has been retracted.”

4. Archiving

Retracted articles remain accessible in the journal archive under a ‘retracted’ label, in compliance with COPE’s Retraction Guidelines, ensuring that the publication record remains transparent and complete.

5. Editorial Board Responsibilities
Throughout the retraction process, the Editorial Board is responsible for maintaining:
• Impartiality,
• Transparency, and
• Ethical integrity.
In cases of confirmed ethical misconduct, the journal reserves the right to notify relevant institutions, research ethics committees, and funding bodies as appropriate.