Çukurova Journal of Medical Students is a periodical publication of Çukurova University Faculty of Medicine and is published twice a year (in June and December) every 6 months. Çukurova Journal of Medical Students features experimental and clinical research articles, case reports, and reviews related to medical sciences (basic medical sciences, internal medicine, and surgical medicine). Çukurova Journal of Medical Students is a scientific journal that aims to reach all relevant national and international medical institutions and individuals free of charge.

A major portion of the authors of articles submitted to the journal must consist of Faculty of Medicine students or master's/PhD students studying at the Faculty of Medicine. An advisor faculty member may be included in the article.

Çukurova Journal of Medical Students accepts articles submitted for publication in the following formats:

• Original research
• Case reports
• Reviews
• Letters to the editor
• Book reviews

Çukurova Journal of Medical Students is an open-access journal. In this context, it adheres to the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI). According to the BOAI, Open Access is defined as the "free availability [of peer-reviewed literature] on the public internet, permitting any users to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of these articles, crawl them for indexing, pass them as data to software, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without financial, legal, or technical barriers."

Çukurova Journal of Medical Students does not charge any fees for article submission, evaluation, or publication processes.

Article Evaluation Process Articles are subject to a double-blind peer-review system. Neither authors nor reviewers have access to each other's identity. All manuscripts are evaluated by two reviewers. The final decision regarding the articles belongs to the editorial board and the editor. All manuscripts are scanned for plagiarism using the iThenticate software.

General Principles Articles that have not been published previously, are not currently under evaluation in another journal for publication, and are approved by each author are accepted for evaluation. The editorial board may make formal and content changes to the manuscript with the authors' permission. The editor and language editors have full authority regarding language, spelling, and ensuring references are written as they appear in Index Medicus, along with related matters. If previously published excerpts, tables, images, etc. are included in the article, the author is obligated to obtain written permission from the copyright holder and authors, and state this in the article. The author(s) are responsible for ensuring necessary permissions are obtained. Abstracts presented at scientific meetings are accepted as references provided they are specified in the article. If the submitted article complies with formal rules, the editor sends it for review by at least two domestic and/or international referees; if the referees deem it necessary, the authors make the requested changes, after which publication is approved. Articles, figures, and photographs not accepted for publication are not returned to the authors.

Ethics

Scientific Responsibility The compliance of articles with scientific and ethical rules is the responsibility of the authors. All authors must have made a direct academic and scientific contribution to the submitted article. In this context, an "author" is considered someone who makes a significant contribution to the conceptualization and design, acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for published research, and who plays a role in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for content. Other conditions for authorship include planning or executing the study and/or revising it. Providing funding, data collection, or general supervision of the research group alone does not confer authorship rights. All individuals listed as authors must meet all stated criteria, and every individual who meets these criteria may be listed as an author. In multi-center studies, all group members must meet the conditions specified above. The ordering of authors' names should be a joint decision. All authors must confirm the author ordering by signing the Copyright Transfer Form. The names of all authors must appear in the section below the title of the paper. All individuals who do not meet the criteria for authorship but contributed to the study should be listed in the "acknowledgments" section. Examples include persons providing purely technical support, writing assistance, or general support. Financial and material support must also be acknowledged. Individuals who provided material support to the paper but do not meet authorship criteria should be grouped under headings such as "clinical investigators" or "assistant investigators," and their functions or participation specified as "served as scientific advisor," "reviewed study proposal," "collected data," or "provided care for study patients." Written permission must be obtained from individuals listed in the acknowledgment section.

Ethical Responsibility Çukurova Journal of Medical Students adopts the principle of complying with the ethical standards of the Human Experimentation Committee of the 1975 Declaration of Helsinki, revised in 2000 (www.wma.netle/policy/b3.htm). Therefore, articles submitted to Çukurova Medical Journal for publication must explicitly state compliance with the committee's ethical standards regarding subjects participating in clinical trials. When necessary, ethics committee approval letters from local or national committees relevant to the trial type may be requested from authors by the editor. Additionally, a document signed by all authors along with a statement confirming that written informed consent was obtained from participants/patients—or their legal guardians if patients lack judgment capacity—must be sent to the editor. In the presence of such studies, authors must state in the METHODS section of the article that they conducted the study in accordance with these principles and obtained "informed consent" from their institution's ethics board and the participating individuals. If "animals" were used in the study, authors must state in the METHODS section that they protected animal rights in accordance with the principles of the "Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals" (www.nap.edu/catalog/5140.html) and obtained approval from their institutional ethics board. When reporting animal experiments, authors must confirm in writing whether institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed. In case reports, "informed consent" must also be obtained from patients. The compliance of articles with ethical rules is the authors' responsibility. Çukurova Journal of Medical Students requires that published articles remain free of commercial concerns and adhere to the best ethical and scientific standards in the field. The editor and publisher offer no guarantees and accept no responsibility regarding the characteristics or descriptions of commercial products advertised in the journal. If a direct or indirect commercial connection or an institution providing financial support exists for the study, authors must declare on the sources page that they have no commercial relationship with the commercial product, drug, pharmaceutical company, etc. used, or disclose the nature of any relationship (e.g., consultant, other agreements).

Privacy and Confidentiality of Patients and Study Participants Patient privacy cannot be violated without permission. Identifying information such as patient names, initials, hospital numbers, photographs, and pedigree details must not be published unless essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent/guardian) gives written informed consent.

Particularly in case reports, identifying details regarding the patient should be omitted unless necessary. For instance, masking the eye region in photos is insufficient to conceal identity. If data has been altered to protect anonymity, authors must provide assurance that these modifications do not affect scientific meaning. Informed consent acquisition must also be stated in the article.

Relationships Among Editors, Authors, and Reviewers The editor does not share information about articles (receipt, content, review status, reviewer critiques, or final outcome) with anyone other than authors or reviewers. The editor explicitly states to reviewers that manuscripts submitted for review are the private property of authors and constitute privileged communication. Reviewers and editorial board members cannot publicly discuss articles. Reviewers are not permitted to make copies of articles for themselves and cannot distribute them to others without the editor's permission. After completing their evaluation, reviewers must destroy copies of the manuscript or return them to the editor. The editor of our journal must also destroy copies of rejected or returned manuscripts. Reviewer evaluations cannot be published or disclosed without the author's and editor's consent. Confidentiality of reviewer identities must be maintained. In certain cases, at the editor's discretion, reviewer comments on an article may be shared with other reviewers evaluating the same paper to keep them informed throughout the process.

Language The publication languages of Çukurova Journal of Medical Students are Turkish and American English.

Preparation of Manuscripts Articles to be submitted to the journal should be prepared as follows:

Title The title page must include the names, academic titles, full address, phone and fax numbers, and email address of the corresponding author.

Abstract and Keywords English summaries of Turkish papers must include the English title. In research articles, Turkish and English abstracts must be a maximum of 250 words and structured. Structured abstracts are not required for case reports and invited reviews. The abstract should include the following sections: Objective: Primary and main purpose of the paper; Method(s): Data sources, study design, patients or participants, interviews/evaluations, and key measurements; Results: Main findings; Conclusion(s): Direct clinical applications and conclusions to be drawn.

Abstract The abstract should provide foundational information about the study and include its purpose, main procedures (selection of cases or lab animals, observational and analytical methods), main findings (giving specific effect sizes and statistical significance where possible), and key conclusions. New and important aspects of the study or observations should be highlighted. Since the abstract is the most visible part of an article in electronic databases, authors must ensure it accurately reflects the contents of the paper. Turkish and English keywords (3-5 words) for the article must be selected from the MeSH index and provided immediately after the abstract. Use of abbreviations in abstracts should be avoided as much as possible; if necessary, abbreviations must be defined in parentheses upon first mention. English keywords must comply with "Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)" (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html). Turkish keywords must comply with "Turkey Science Terms (TBT)" (http://www.bilimterimleri.com).

What is Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)? It is a broad, continuously updated medical-biological terminology index used for classifying articles in major international databases and indices to standardize terminology, from which keywords for English articles can be selected.

What is Turkey Science Terms (TBT)? It is a medical-biological terminology index aimed at standardizing national medical-biological terminology, currently containing 186,000 terms and continuously updated, from which keywords for Turkish articles can be selected.

Introduction The introduction should cover the significance of the topic, historical context, prior literature, hypothesis, and the purpose of the study. Both primary and secondary objectives should be explicitly stated. Only directly relevant references should be cited, and data or results from the current study should not be mentioned here.

Materials and Methods The methods section should include data sources, patients or participants, scales, interviews/evaluations, key measurements, performed procedures, and statistical methods. This section should only contain information known during the design or protocol phase of the study; all information obtained during the study must be presented in the results section.

Selection and Description of Cases The selection of observational or experimental participants (patients, animals, controls), target population, and inclusion/exclusion criteria must be clearly defined. Since the relationship of variables like age and gender to the study's purpose is not always clear, authors should explain their usage in the study report (e.g., why a specific age group was selected or why women were excluded). Why and how the study was conducted in a specific manner must be clearly detailed. When authors use variables like ethnicity or race, they must explain how these were measured and validated.

Technical Information Methods and equipment used (including manufacturer name and address in parentheses within the paragraph) must be detailed so that other researchers can replicate the results. References must be provided for established methods (including statistical methods); for published but lesser-known methods, references and explanations must be given. Similarly, new or significantly modified methods should be defined, reasons for use provided, and limitations evaluated. All drugs and chemicals used must be accurately identified with generic names, dosages, and routes of administration. Authors submitting review articles must describe methods used for locating, selecting, extracting, and synthesizing data. These methods should also appear in the abstract.

Statistics Statistical methods should be described in sufficient detail to enable a knowledgeable reader with access to the original data to verify the reported results. Where possible, findings should be quantified and error measurements (such as confidence intervals) presented. Relying solely on statistical hypothesis testing, such as p-values without reporting effect sizes, should be avoided. References for study design and statistical methods should be standard sources with page numbers cited wherever possible. Statistical terms, abbreviations, and symbols must be defined. The computer software used must be specified.

Results Main findings should be presented completely and supported by statistical data, visually illustrated with appropriate tables, graphs, and figures. Results should be presented in a logical sequence in text, tables, and figures, starting with the most important findings. Do not repeat all data from tables and figures in the text; highlight only key points. Extra material and technical information should be placed in an appendix to prevent breaking text flow, or made available exclusively in the electronic version.

Conclusion When summarizing in the conclusions section, numerical results should be given in absolute terms rather than strictly as derivatives (such as percentages), and the analysis method used must be stated. Only include figures and tables that support the main idea of the article. Try to use graphs instead of oversized tables, and do not duplicate data across graphs and tables.

Discussion In the discussion section, data obtained from the study should be examined in line with the hypothesis, discussing findings that support or refute it. These findings should be compared with similar studies in literature, and differences explained. New and important aspects of the study and derived conclusions should be emphasized. Information or data provided in the introduction or results sections should not be repeated. For experimental studies, it is useful to begin the discussion by briefly summarizing results, followed by examining potential mechanisms or explanations, comparing findings with prior work, summarizing limitations, and noting implications for future studies and clinical practice. Conclusions reached should be matched against the study's objectives, but claims unsupported by findings must be avoided. Authors should particularly avoid comments on economic benefits unless the data includes economic evaluations. New hypotheses may be proposed when necessary, but clearly labeled as such.

Tables, Graphs, and Figures Graphs, figures, and tables in the text must be numbered with Arabic numerals. The location of figures in the text should be indicated.

Tables Tables present information efficiently and allow data to be shown at desired detail levels. Presenting information in tables rather than text generally shortens the manuscript length.

• Each table must be printed double-spaced on a separate page.
• Number tables according to their order of appearance in text and give each a brief title.
• Tables should be prepared using the "Table Classic 1" or "Table Simple 1" auto-format options in MS Word 2003 or higher.
• Do not use vertical or horizontal lines inside tables except for header rows and top/bottom borders.
• Provide a header for each column. Place explanations in footnotes, not in the title. Explain non-standard abbreviations in footnotes using these symbols sequentially: (*,†,‡,§,||,¶,,††,‡‡).
• Statistical measures of variation, such as standard deviation or standard error, must be specified.
• Ensure every table is cited in the text.
• If data from published or unpublished sources is used, permission must be obtained and full acknowledgment made.
• Tables containing extensive data take up significant space and may be suitable only for electronic publication or direct provision by authors to readers. In such cases, an appropriate statement should be added to the text. These tables must be submitted with the manuscript for peer review.

Figures Figures should be professionally drawn and photographed, or submitted digitally in photographic quality. In addition to print-ready versions, high-resolution digital files (such as JPEG or GIF) suitable for electronic display must be sent, and authors should verify display quality on a computer screen prior to submission. Radiographs, CT/MRI scans, diagnostic images, and pathological photomicrographs should generally be submitted as high-quality prints sized 127-173 mm. Letters, numbers, and symbols on figures must be clear, uniform throughout the paper, and legible even when reduced for publication. Figures should be self-explanatory as much as possible. Pathological photomicrographs must contain internal scale markers. Symbols, arrows, or letters must contrast with the background. If photographs of humans are used, individuals must not be identifiable, or written permission must be obtained (see Ethics section). Figures must be numbered sequentially according to their order of appearance in the text. If a previously published figure is used, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder. This permission is required regardless of authorship or publisher, except for documents in the public domain. Additional sketches indicating the print area assist the editor. Colored figures are printed only if deemed necessary by the editor or if the author covers the extra cost.

Figure Footnotes Starting on a separate page, write table titles and footnotes for figures single-spaced, identifying which figure they correspond to using Arabic numerals. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to mark parts of a figure, define each clearly in the footnotes. Internal scale markers and staining techniques must be explained for pathological photomicrographs.

Other Matters

Units of Measurement Length, weight, and volume units should be reported in the metric system (meter, kilogram, liter) or decimal multiples. Temperatures must be in degrees Celsius, and blood pressure in millimeters of mercury. Both local and International System of Units (SI) should be used. Drug concentrations may be given in SI or mass units, or alternatively in parentheses.

Abbreviations and Symbols Use standard abbreviations only; non-standard abbreviations can be confusing to readers. Avoid abbreviations in the title. Unless it is a standard unit of measurement, spell out the full term upon first use followed by the abbreviation in parentheses.

Acknowledgment(s) Placed at the end of the text before references. This section includes expressions of gratitude for personal, technical, or material assistance.

Case Reports and Word Count Limits There are no specific word count limits for original articles, case reports, or review articles. Letters to the editor must be a maximum of 1,000 words without tables or figures, and signed by all authors. Letters offering critiques or evaluations of an article published in Çukurova Journal of Medical Students must be received within 12 weeks following the publication of the article in question.

Acknowledgment(s) Placed at the end of the text before references. This section includes expressions of gratitude for personal, technical, or material assistance.

References

General Issues Regarding References Although review articles assist readers in accessing sources on a topic, they do not always accurately reflect the original work. Thus, authors should cite original works whenever possible. Conversely, citing an excessive number of original works on a topic wastes space. Citing a few key original studies generally serves the same purpose as lengthy lists. Furthermore, references in electronic formats can now be linked/added, allowing readers easy access via online searches. Abstracts should not be cited as references. Citations to accepted but unpublished articles should be designated as "in press" or "forthcoming"; authors must obtain written permission to cite these articles and verify they are in press. Submitted but unaccepted manuscripts should be cited as "unpublished observations" with written permission. "Personal communications" should not be cited unless conveying essential information unavailable from a public source. If cited, the person's name and date of communication should be provided in parentheses. Authors must obtain written permission and confirmation of accuracy from the source for scientific articles. Uniform requirements adopt an ANSI standard style modified primarily by the National Library of Medicine (NLM). For citation examples, authors may refer to http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html. Journal titles should be abbreviated according to MEDLINE format. The "List of Journals Indexed for MEDLINE," published annually as a separate document and included in the January issue of MEDLINE, may be consulted. The list is also available at http://www.nlm.nih.gov. References should be numbered and listed at the end of the paper under the heading "References" in order of appearance in text. In text, cite as superscripts within sentences or before punctuation at sentence end. Authors are responsible for reference accuracy. All references must be cited in text. References should be formatted according to the following examples:

Reference examples are listed below: General:

• Personal experiences and unpublished works should not be cited as references.

Please review the examples for writing references and pay special attention to punctuation marks!

1. Examples for journal articles: For a journal article indexed in MEDLINE and abbreviated according to MEDLINE: Enter author surnames and first initials without periods, separated by commas; place a period after the last author's first initial before proceeding to the title. If there are more than six authors, list the first six followed by et al. Enter article title ending with a period. Write the abbreviated MEDLINE journal name without ending periods, followed by a space; publication year; semicolon; volume number, issue number in parentheses, colon, starting page number, hyphen, ending page number (without repeating common leading digits in ending page), ending with a period.

Example: Pedersen A, Wilmsmeier A, Wiedl KH, Bauer J, Kueppers K, Koelkebeck K et al. Anterior cingulate cortex activation is related to learning potential on the WCST in schizophrenia patients. Brain Cogn. 2012;79:245-51.

For a journal article not indexed in MEDLINE and without an abbreviation: Kesiktaş E, Kerimov R, Tunç S, Gencel S, Kokaçya Ö, Kesiktaş R et al. El Parmak defektlerinin onarımında güvenilir ve kullanışlı bir flep: Ters akımlı dorsal metakarpal arter pediküllü flep. Çukurova Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Dergisi. 2011;36:11-7.

1. For supplements: For a MEDLINE-indexed journal article abbreviated per MEDLINE: McIntyre RS, Yoon J. Efficacy of antimanic treatments in mixed states. Bipolar Disord. 2012;14(Suppl 2):S22-36.

For a Turkish journal article not indexed in MEDLINE, without an abbreviation, used in English articles: Batur G, Ayhan FF, Alioğlu B, Okumuş M, Borman P. Pearson sendromlu bir olguda mitokondrial miyopati rehabilitasyonu. Türkiye Fiziksel Tıp ve Rehabilitasyon Dergisi. 2011;57(Suppl 2):341-4. (Turkish)

1. For articles in press: Littlewhite HB, Donald JA. Pulmonary blood flow regulation in an aquatic snake. Science. 2002;doi:1111./1111 (in press).
2. Citations from books: Single-author book citation: Uzun O. Schizophrenia: A Pharmacological Treatment Manual, Istanbul, Turkish Association for Psychopharmacology, 2008.

For a book chapter with one editor: McNab S. Lacrimal surgery. In Practical Ophthalmic Surgery (Ed H Willshaw):191-211. New York, Churchill Livingstone, 1992.

For a book chapter with multiple editors: Taylor R. Depression and gynaecological disorders. In Textbook of Gynaecology (Eds MM Robertson, CLE Katona):133-44. New York, John Wiley & Sons, 1997.

If editors are also authors of the text within the book: Write excerpted text first, followed by book title capitalized. Diener HC, Wilkinson M (editors). Drug-induced headache. In Headache. 1st ed., New York: Springer-Verlag, 1988, p. 45-67.

For translated book citations: Milkman HB, Sederer LI. Alkolizm ve Madde Bağımlılığında Tedavi Seçenekleri (Trans. Eds Y Doğan, A Özden, M İzmir). Ankara, Ankara Üniversitesi Basımevi, 1994.

1. For thesis citations: Koç F. Amiyotrofik lateral sklerozda klinik bulguların dağılımı (Specialization thesis). Adana, Çukurova Üniversitesi, 1999.
2. For conference proceedings: Felek S, Kılıç SS, Akbulut A, Yıldız M. Görsel halüsinasyonla seyreden bir fligelloz olgusu. XXVI. Türk Mikrobiyoloji Kongresi Özet Kitabı, 22-27 Eylül 2000, Antalya, Mars Matbaası, 1994, p.53-6.
3. For institutional data files: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies: Treatment Episode Data Set: Admissions (TEDS-A), 2008 (data file ICPSR27241-v2). Ann Arbor, Mich, Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research, March 31, 2010 (doi:10.3886/ICPSR27241)
4. For newspapers: New York Times: Comparing Schizophrenia Drugs (editorial). New York Times, Sept 21, 2005
5. For internet sources: [Reference number] Stern M. Radial nerve entrapment. http://www.emedicine.com/orthoped/topic549.htm (accessed Dec 2005).

Submission of Manuscripts Submission of articles to Çukurova Journal of Medical Students is conducted entirely online. Until the online application system is fully integrated, full texts of manuscripts should be sent to the editor at editorcutf@cu.edu.tr.

Manuscripts must be accompanied by a cover letter containing the following information:

• Statement on whether reports from the same or closely related studies were previously submitted for publication. Specific reference to such work must be made and cited in the new manuscript. Copies of related material should be attached to help the editor decide.
• Statement indicating financial or other relationships that could lead to a conflict of interest, if not specified in the manuscript or author form.
• Statement that the manuscript has been read and approved by all authors, authorship criteria have been met as outlined, and every author believes the paper reflects honest work. The letter should contain any other information helpful to the editor. If previously submitted to another journal, attaching comments from previous editors/reviewers and author responses is beneficial to expedite evaluation.

A checklist is provided to ensure authors complete all requirements before submission. Authors should verify their submission using the journal's checklist and submit this form alongside their manuscript.

• After the Copyright Transfer Form is signed by all authors, the physical document with original wet signatures must be mailed to the address below.

Correspondence Address: Çukurova Tıp Öğrenci Dergisi Çukurova Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Yayın Dökümantasyon Kurulu 01330 Balcalı-Adana Email: editorcutf@cu.edu.tr

FINAL CHECKLIST

• Cover page to the editor
  • Category of the article
  • Statement that it has not been sent to another journal
  • Relationship with a sponsor or commercial firm (if any)
  • Confirmation of statistical review (for research articles)
  • Confirmation of English language check
• Copyright transfer form
• Permission document if previously published material (text, image, table) is used
• For human studies: Statement in "materials and methods" section confirming compliance with Declaration of Helsinki principles, ethics committee approval from their institution, and patient "informed consent"
• For animal studies: Statement in "materials and methods" section confirming compliance with "Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals" principles
• Title page
  • Article title in Turkish and English (preferably one line each)
  • Authors and their institutions
  • Correspondence address, work phone, mobile phone, and email addresses of all authors
• Abstracts (maximum 250 words) (Turkish and English)
• Keywords: 3 to 10 words (Turkish and English)

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