Peer Review Process
All manuscripts submitted to the Journal of Baltalimanı are evaluated under a double-blind peer review system. When necessary, the editorial board seeks the opinions of independent reviewers selected from national and international experts. Each study is reviewed by at least two referees for its scientific, ethical, and methodological quality. Research articles are also subject to review by a statistical editor.

All submissions must be original works that have not been previously published, are not under review elsewhere, and have been approved by all authors. All studies requiring ethical approval must be conducted in accordance with national and international ethical standards. In cases of suspected ethical violations, actions are taken in line with the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Human and Animal Rights
For clinical, experimental, and drug research involving humans, ethics committee approval is mandatory, along with a statement that the study was conducted in accordance with international agreements (e.g., the Declaration of Helsinki – 2013 revision). For animal experiments, compliance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and approval from an animal ethics committee are required. These documents must be submitted with the manuscript.

If images or data related to cases carry a risk of revealing identity, informed consent must be obtained and stated in the “Materials and Methods” section.

For participation of individuals under 18 years of age, informed consent forms signed by both parents or a legal guardian are required.

Similarity and Research Misconduct
All submissions are screened for similarity using iThenticate or similar software. Manuscripts with a similarity rate exceeding 15% are not eligible for publication.

Authors must avoid the following forms of misconduct:

Plagiarism

Fabrication of data

Duplicate publication

Salami publication (fragmentation)

Data falsification

Such practices are strictly rejected. Conflicts of interest intended to influence the review process, inappropriate citations, and misleading contribution statements are also considered unethical conduct.

Publisher’s Responsibilities
The publisher takes all necessary steps to correct, retract, or issue statements regarding articles in which scientific misconduct, plagiarism, or ethical violations are detected. The principle of editorial independence is strictly upheld.

Editors’ Responsibilities

Hold full responsibility during the publication process

Ensure objective and fair evaluation processes

Maintain confidentiality principles

Manage conflicts of interest

Implement corrections or retractions in cases of erroneous publications

Reviewers’ Responsibilities

Provide impartial and scientific evaluations

Adhere to confidentiality and ethical principles

Disclose potential conflicts of interest to the editor

Point out uncited relevant works and similarities to existing literature

Authors’ Responsibilities

Guarantee that the submitted work has not been previously published and is not under review elsewhere

Provide adequate sourcing and appropriate citations