1. GENERAL INFORMATION

In order to improve scientific publishing standards, it is essential that journals define the principles to be followed during manuscript preparation in accordance with international standards and verify compliance with these principles during the evaluation process. Therefore, manuscripts submitted to the journal must be prepared in accordance with the criteria of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

At the beginning of the evaluation process, authors are required to upload to the system the Journal Copyright Transfer and Author Contribution Form signed by the authors for all submissions.

• Internationally accepted standards for preparing manuscripts to be submitted to scientific journals are as follows:
  
• Submissions must not have been previously published elsewhere and must not have been submitted for publication to another journal.
  
• During submission, completion of the Open Researcher and Contributor Identifier (ORCID ID) field is mandatory for all authors.
  
• If the manuscript includes previously published quoted text, tables, figures, images, etc., the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright holder and the original author(s) and must indicate this in the
• manuscript. The legal responsibility in this regard rests with the authors.
  
• Manuscripts previously presented at scientific meetings may be considered for evaluation, provided that this is clearly stated.
  
• Information on how the sample size was determined, how sampling was conducted, and which biostatistical methods and principles were used in data analysis must be provided under the subheading “Statistical Analysis” at
• the end of the “MATERIALS AND METHODS” section.

All manuscripts are carefully checked for similarity and/or plagiarism. Manuscripts that do not comply with the Journal Instructions for Authors are not included in the Peer Review Process.

Journal Policy on Plagiarism (Plagiarism Principle)

Plagiarism is defined as the use of others’ published or unpublished ideas or words (or other intellectual property rights) without attribution or permission and presenting them as new and original rather than derived from an existing source. Self-plagiarism refers to an author’s reuse of certain parts of their previous works on the same subject in another publication without indicating them as quotations and without appropriate citation.
(https://wame.org/recommendations-on-publication-ethics-policies-for-medical-journals)
Manuscripts in which plagiarism and/or self-plagiarism is detected during editorial assessment will not be evaluated. During the file upload process, authors must upload the similarity report obtained using an appropriate plagiarism detection program (e.g., iThenticate, Turnitin, etc.) together with the other required files. Manuscripts with a similarity rate greater than 15% will be considered plagiarism and will be rejected.

2. SCIENTIFIC RESPONSIBILITY

All authors listed in the submitted manuscript must have made a direct academic and scientific contribution to the work. The author responsible for communication with the journal assumes responsibility for the final version of the manuscript on behalf of all authors.

3. ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITY

For all studies involving the “human” element, compliance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki is required. In such studies, authors must indicate in the MATERIALS AND METHODS section that the study was conducted in accordance with these principles, that approval was obtained from their institutional ethics committees, and that informed consent was obtained from the individuals who participated in the study.

If the “animal” element is used in the study, authors must state in the MATERIALS AND METHODS section that animal rights were protected in accordance with the principles of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and that approval was obtained from their institutional ethics committees.

In case reports, informed consent must be obtained from patients regardless of whether the patient’s identity is disclosed.

If there is a direct or indirect commercial connection in the manuscript or an institution providing financial support for the study, authors must state on the submission (cover) page whether they have any commercial relationship with the commercial product, drug, company, etc. used, and if so, the nature of such relationship (consultancy, other agreements).

If Ethics Committee Approval is required for the manuscript, authors must declare in the MATERIALS AND METHODS section, with the date and approval number, that they obtained ethics committee permission/approval.

The manuscript must include a statement indicating compliance with Research and Publication Ethics.

4. PUBLICATION / COPYRIGHT

The copyrights of manuscripts accepted for publication belong to the authors. The opinions and recommendations expressed in the manuscripts are entirely the responsibility of the authors.

For each manuscript, the Copyright Transfer and Author Contribution Form must be completed and submitted to the journal together with the manuscript.

5. MANUSCRIPT TYPES

The publication language of the journal is English.

The types of manuscripts to be submitted for publication must fall under the categories below and be prepared according to the specified structures. Manuscripts that do not comply with the Journal Instructions for Authors are not included in the Peer Review Process.

a) Original Research

These include prospective, retrospective, and all kinds of experimental studies.

Structure: English main titles and running titles should be used (the first letters of words should be capitalized).

Abstract* must be structured as “Aim, Material and Methods, Result, Conclusion” and should contain a minimum of 200 and a maximum of 250 words.

• INTRODUCTION
  
• MATERIALS AND METHODS
  
• RESULTS
  
• DISCUSSION
  
• CONCLUSION
  
• ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  
• REFERENCES

b) Review

Reviews should be prepared by authors directly or by invited authors. They may be prepared for any topic with a medical characteristic, including the latest medical literature. Having published works by the author(s) on the relevant topic is a preferred criterion.

Structure:

• Abstract (minimum 150 and maximum 200 words, in Turkish and English)
  
• Topic-related headings
• REFERENCES (number of references is limited to 40)

c) Case Report

These are manuscripts describing rare cases that differ in diagnosis and treatment. They should be supported by an adequate number of photographs and diagrams.

Structure:

• Abstract (minimum 100 and maximum 150 words, in Turkish and English)
  
• Introduction
  
• CASE REPORT
  
• DISCUSSION
  
• REFERENCES

d) Editorial Comment/Discussion

An evaluation of published original research articles by an expert other than the authors of the research. It should be published at the end of the relevant article.

e) Letter to the Editor

Manuscripts of up to 500 words that include readers’ different opinions, experiences, and questions regarding articles published in the journal within the last year.

Structure:

• No title and abstract sections.
  
• Number of references is limited to 5.
  
• The article to which it is dedicated must be specified by issue and date, and the author’s name, institution, and address must be provided at the end. A reply to the letter is published in the journal by the editor or the author(s) of the article.

f) Scientific Letter

Manuscripts that inform the reader on general medical topics and discuss the topic by also citing published scientific articles.

Structure:

• ABSTRACT (minimum 100 and maximum 150 words, in Turkish and English)
  
• Topic-related headings
  
• REFERENCES

g) Surgical Technique

Manuscripts in which surgical techniques are described in detail.

Structure:

• ABSTRACT (minimum 100 and maximum 150 words, in Turkish and English)
  
• Surgical Technique
  
• REFERENCES
  

h) Differential Diagnosis

Case reports with current value, including commentary on similar diseases.

Structure:

• ABSTRACT (minimum 100 and maximum 150 words, in Turkish and English)
  
• Topic-related headings
  
• REFERENCES (3–5)

i) Original Images

Annotated medical images and photographs that are rarely observed in the literature.

Structure:

• A 300-word text on the topic and original images
  
• REFERENCES

j) What Is Your Diagnosis?

Manuscripts prepared in a question–answer format about rare diseases that differ in diagnosis and treatment.

Structure:

• Topic-related headings
  
• REFERENCES (3–5)

k) Medical Book Reviews

Reviews of nationally or internationally recognized books with current value.

l) Questions and Answers

Educational manuscripts prepared in a question–answer format on medical topics.

6. MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION RULES

Compliance with the following formal principles is required for manuscripts submitted for publication.

PREPARATION OF THE MANUSCRIPT

Manuscripts that do not comply with the Journal Instructions for Authors are not included in the Peer Review Process.

1. Manuscripts must be prepared as a Microsoft Word® document.
2. Manuscripts must be written in Times New Roman, 12-point font, 1.5 line spacing, and justified alignment. Margins must be 2.5 cm, and page numbers must be placed at the bottom right corner of each page. Paragraph indentation should not be used.
3. On the submission page to the editor, the category of the manuscript, confirmation that it has not been submitted to another journal, if applicable the individuals/organizations financially supporting the study, and the relationship of these organizations with the authors must be stated.
4. The cover page must include the manuscript title and an English running title not exceeding 40 characters, the authors’ names, academic titles, ORCID® numbers, institutions, the corresponding author’s name, full address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address.
5. Manuscripts to be evaluated must be submitted as a single file including “titles, abstract, main text, references, table and/or figures.”
6. The manuscript title and running title (English) must be written in bold, aligned to the left, with the first letters of words capitalized. The English title and running title must appear before the ABSTRACT section.
7. Depending on the manuscript type, other headings (e.g., ABSTRACT, INTRODUCTION, MATERIAL AND METHODS, DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION, REFERENCES) must be written in uppercase letters, bold, and aligned to the left.
8. If the manuscript has been presented at a scientific meeting, the name, date, and place of the meeting must be stated.
9. The abstract section must be prepared in English according to the manuscript type.
10. A dot must be used as the decimal separator.

KEYWORDS

Keywords are one of the most important elements that enable researchers to access a published article. Specifying keywords relevant to the subject of the manuscript in sufficient number and with standardized terminology is of great importance for the manuscript to receive citations and contribute to science.

• Keywords must be written in English, with a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 8.
• Keywords must be separated by semicolons (;).
  
• English keywords must comply with Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). For keyword selection, appropriate terms may be found by entering relevant concepts on the page accessed via the following link:
  (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html)

What is Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)?

MeSH is a comprehensive and continuously updated index of medical and biological terms used for the classification of articles in major international indexing databases. It provides standardized terminology from which keywords for English manuscripts can be selected.

ABBREVIATIONS

Abbreviations must be provided in parentheses at first occurrence and the same abbreviation must be used throughout the text. For internationally used abbreviations, the source “Scientific style and format: the CBE manual for authors, editors, and publishers” may be consulted.

FIGURES, IMAGES, TABLES, AND GRAPHS

1. Figures, images, tables, and graphs must be provided after the References section.
2. Images/photographs must be in color, with sufficient contrast and clarity to allow details to be seen. For high-quality printing, figures and images/photographs must be submitted separately as .tif, .png, .jpg, or .gif files (approximately 500×400 pixels, 8 cm width, scanned at 300 dpi) and additionally delivered to the journal.
3. Abbreviations used must be stated in the explanatory captions under figures, images, tables, and graphs.
4. If previously published figures, images, tables, or graphs are used, written permission must be obtained, and this permission must be stated as an explanation in the captions.
5. Table titles must be placed above the table, and figure and graph titles must be placed below the figure/graph. Except for the first letter, all words must be written in lowercase (Table 1. and Figure 1.).

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

If there is any conflict of interest, financial support, donation, or any editorial (English evaluation) and/or technical assistance, this must be stated at the end of the text.

REFERENCES

Accurate identification of a journal’s citation metrics is directly related to correct reference formatting. In proper reference formatting, the information required to enable access to the cited work must be complete and accurate. Establishing and applying an internationally standardized reference format is therefore important.

Vancouver style must be used for in-text citations. References must be numbered in the order of appearance and cited at the end of the sentence in parentheses.

Examples:

• … has been shown (1,2,7–9).
  
• Smith and colleagues (4) …
  
• Smith et al. (4) …
  
• In the study of Khalifa and Elmessiry (5) …

The reference list must be prepared in the order in which references appear in the text.

EndNote® or similar reference management software may be used. However, before submission to the journal, the reference list must be converted into plain text.

General rules for reference formatting:

• If the number of authors is 6 or fewer, all authors must be listed. If 7 or more, the first 6 authors must be listed followed by “et al.” (and “ve ark.” for Turkish manuscripts).
  
• Personal experiences and unpublished publications must not be cited as references.
• DOI should be the only acceptable online reference.
  

If the reference is a journal article

Author(s) surname and initials. Article title. Journal title. Year;Volume(Issue):Page range.

a) For print journals or e-journal articles on the internet
Rose ME, Huerbin MB, Melick J, Marion DW, Palmer AM, Schiding JK, et al. Regulation of interstitial excitatory amino acid concentrations after cortical contusion injury. Brain Res. 2002; 935(1-2): 40-6.

b) For articles without an author
21st century heart solution may have a sting in the tail. BMJ. 2002; 325(7357): 184.

If the reference is a book

Author(s). Book title. Edition (if not first). City: Publisher; Year.

Example:
Murray PR, Rosenthal KS, Kobayashi GS, Pfaller MA. Medical microbiology. 4th ed. St. Louis: Mosby; 2002.

a) If the author and editor are the same
Dionne RA, Phero JC, Becker DE, editors. Management of pain and anxiety in the dental office. Philadelphia: WB Saunders; 2002.
(Note: In Turkish sources, “editors” should be expressed as “editörler”.)

b) For a book chapter
Meltzer PS, Kallioniemi A, Trent JM. Chromosome alterations in human solid tumors. In: Vogelstein B, Kinzler KW, editors. The genetic basis of human cancer. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2002. p. 93-113.
(Note: “In” is used only for English books. In Turkish sources, “p” and “editor(s)” should be expressed as “s” and “editör(ler)”.)

If the reference is an encyclopedia or dictionary

Encyclopedia/dictionary title. Edition. City: Publisher; Year. Entry; Pages.

Example:
Dorland’s illustrated medical dictionary. 29th ed. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders; 2000. Filamin; p. 675.
(Note: In Turkish sources, “ed” and “p” should be expressed as “baskı” and “s”.)

If the reference is a thesis

Author initial(s). Thesis title [type of thesis]. City: University/Institution; Year.

Example:
Borkowski MM. Infant sleep and feeding: a telephone survey of Hispanic Americans [PhD dissertation]. Mount Pleasant (MI): Central Michigan University; 2002.

If the reference is a conference/congress/symposium proceeding

Author(s). Title of paper. Editor(s), editors. Conference title; Year; City. Place of publication: Publisher; Year. Pages.

a) For a proceeding published in a book
Khalifa ME, Elmessiry HM, ElBahnasy KM, Ramadan HMM. Medical image registration using mutual information similarity measure. In: Lim CT, Goh JCH, editors. Icbme2008: Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Biomedical Engineering; 2008 Dec 3-6; Singapore. Dordrecht: Springer; 2009. p. 151-5.
(Note: “In” is used only for English books.)

b) For a proceeding not published in a book
Waterkeyn J, Matimati R, Muringanzia A. ZOD for all: scaling up the community health club model to meet the MDGs for sanitation in rural and urban areas: case studies from Zimbabwe and Uganda. International Water Association Development Congress; 2009 Nov 15-9; Mexico.

If the reference is a website

Author (if any). Website name [Internet]. Place of publication: Publisher; Publication date [Updated date; Cited date]. Available from: URL.

Example:
Cancer-Pain.org [Internet]. New York: Association of Cancer Online Resources, Inc.; c2000-01 [Updated: 2002 May 16; Cited: 2002 Jul 9]. Available from: http://www.cancer-pain.org/
.
7. POINTS TO CONSIDER DURING SUBMISSION

The corresponding author must complete the Copyright Transfer and Author Contribution Form and submit it to the journal together with the manuscript.

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