Author Guidelines

Indo Eurasian Journal of Medical Sciences (IEJMS) · Published bi-monthly by Scienceroot Publishers

1. Before you submit

Confirm all of the following:

• The work falls within the journal's Aims and Scope.
• The manuscript is original, has not been published elsewhere, and is not under consideration by another journal.
• All authors have read and approved the submitted version and meet the ICMJE authorship criteria (section 13).
• Ethics approval and informed consent are documented where applicable (section 14).
• Clinical trials were prospectively registered; systematic reviews were registered in PROSPERO (section 14.5).
• The relevant EQUATOR reporting checklist is completed and uploaded (section 3).
• All authors have an ORCID iD.
• IEJMS screens every submission with similarity-detection software before review. See the Plagiarism Policy.

2. Article types

Type	Main text	Abstract	References	Tables + figures
Original research	3,000–6,000 (typical)	Structured, 300 words	~60 as guidance	8
Systematic review / meta-analysis	4,000–8,000 (typical)	Structured, 350 words	No limit	10
Narrative or scoping review	4,000–8,000 (typical)	Unstructured, 300 words	No limit	10
Study protocol	up to 4,000	Structured, 300 words	50	6
Case series	up to 3,000	Unstructured, 250 words	30	8
Case report	up to 2,000	Unstructured, 200 words	25	6
Short communication / brief report	up to 2,500	Unstructured, 200 words	25	4
Editorial / commentary (invited)	up to 2,000	None	25	3
Letter to the editor	up to 1,000	None	10	2

Word counts exclude the title page, abstract, tables, figure legends, references and declarations.

• Word limits. For original research and reviews the figures are indicative. Where the subject requires more, say so in the cover letter. For short communications, case reports, letters and commentaries the limits are firm; a manuscript exceeding them is reclassified to the appropriate type and assessed on those criteria.
• References. Reviews have no limit. For original research, cite what the argument requires. The editorial concern is relevance, currency and whether each citation supports the statement it is attached to.
• Tables and figures. The number is a combined allowance. There is no limit on supplementary tables and figures.
• Not counted toward the limit. CONSORT, STROBE and PRISMA flow diagrams, and any other diagram required by the applicable reporting guideline; the baseline characteristics table in original research and case series; and multi-panel figures, which count as one regardless of panel count.

3. Mandatory reporting guidelines

Authors must follow the reporting guideline appropriate to the study design and upload the completed checklist as a supplementary file at submission, with page numbers indicated. Manuscripts submitted without a checklist are returned.

Study type	Guideline
Randomised controlled trial	CONSORT (plus the relevant extension)
Clinical trial protocol	SPIRIT
Observational study	STROBE
Systematic review / meta-analysis	PRISMA (PRISMA-P for protocols)
Diagnostic / prognostic accuracy study	STARD
Prediction model development or validation	TRIPOD (TRIPOD+AI for machine-learning models)
AI / machine learning in medical imaging	CLAIM
Case report	CARE
Qualitative research	COREQ or SRQR
Economic evaluation	CHEERS
Quality-improvement study	SQUIRE 2.0
Animal research	ARRIVE 2.0
Genetic association study	STREGA
Survey research	CROSS

The full list is maintained by the EQUATOR Network.

4. Language and file preparation

• Language. English (British or American spelling, applied consistently). Manuscripts whose language impedes scientific meaning are returned without review.
• File format. Editable .docx, or LaTeX source with a compiled PDF. PDF-only submissions are not accepted.
• Layout. A4, margins ≥ 2.5 cm, 11 pt Times New Roman or Arial, 1.5 line spacing, continuous line numbering and page numbering throughout.
• Anonymisation. IEJMS operates double-blind review. The main manuscript file must contain no author names, affiliations, acknowledgements, funding details, institution names in the methods, or self-identifying citations. Remove identifying metadata from the file properties. Author details go on a separate title page file.

5. Title page (separate file)

• Article type.
• Full title — declarative or descriptive, ≤ 20 words, stating the study design for research articles.
• Running title, ≤ 50 characters.
• Full name, highest degree, department, institution, city and country for every author.
• ORCID iD for every author (mandatory).
• Corresponding author's name, postal address, institutional email and telephone.
• Word count of main text; number of tables; number of figures.
• Acknowledgements.
• Funding statement.
• Conflict of interest declaration.
• Ethics approval reference and trial or PROSPERO registration number.

6. Abstract and keywords

• Structured abstracts (original research, systematic reviews, protocols) use the headings: Background, Objective(s), Methods, Results, Conclusions. Where applicable add Trial registration with the registry name and number.
• The abstract must be self-contained: no abbreviations except those universally understood, no references, no data absent from the main text. Report the key numerical findings.
• Supply 4–8 keywords, preferring MeSH terms.
• Original research must also supply three bullet points under “What this study adds” (each ≤ 25 words).

7. Main text structure

Research articles follow: Title page · Abstract · Keywords · Introduction · Materials and Methods · Results · Discussion · Conclusions · Declarations · References.

• 7.1 Introduction. Two to four paragraphs. State what is known, identify the specific gap, and state the objective or hypothesis in the final paragraph.
• 7.2 Methods. Written in sufficient detail for independent replication. Include study design, eligibility criteria, intervention or exposure, primary and secondary outcomes, sample size calculation, randomisation, handling of missing data, statistical analysis, ethics approval, and named software.
• 7.3 Results. Report findings without interpretation. Begin with participant flow (a CONSORT or STROBE flow diagram is required for trials and cohort studies) and a baseline characteristics table. Report all pre-specified outcomes.
• 7.4 Discussion. Structure as: principal findings; comparison with existing literature; explanation of mechanisms or plausible reasons; strengths and limitations; implications for practice, policy and research.
• 7.5 Conclusions. One short paragraph, proportionate to the evidence. Avoid “further research is needed” as the sole conclusion.

8. Statistical reporting

• State the statistical tests used and the assumptions verified for each.
• Report effect estimates with 95% confidence intervals as the primary presentation. Confidence intervals are required; p-values alone are not sufficient.
• Report exact p-values to three decimal places (e.g. p = 0.032). Use p < 0.001 only below that threshold. Do not report “NS”.
• Describe continuous data as mean (SD) or median (IQR) as appropriate.
• Declare all subgroup analyses, state whether they were pre-specified, and adjust for multiplicity.

9. Units, nomenclature and terminology

• SI units throughout; conventional units may follow in parentheses where clinically standard.
• Define every abbreviation at first use. Avoid abbreviations used fewer than three times.
• Drugs: use generic (INN) names.
• Genes and proteins: follow HGNC nomenclature.
• Micro-organisms: full binomial in italics at first use, abbreviated genus thereafter.
• Use person-first, non-stigmatising language. Report race and ethnicity only where scientifically relevant.

10. Tables

Supply as editable text within the manuscript file or as a separate .docx — never as images. One table per page, numbered in citation order, each with a concise title above and footnotes below.

11. Figures

Supply as separate files: TIFF, EPS or high-resolution PDF. Minimum 300 dpi for photographs, 600 dpi for line art and combination figures.

• Image integrity. No feature of a figure may be enhanced, obscured, moved, removed or added. Adjustments to brightness, contrast or colour balance must be applied to the whole image. Confirmed manipulation results in rejection and notification of the authors' institution.
• Patient images. Any photograph, radiograph or clinical image from which an individual could be identified requires signed consent for publication. Eye bars and pixellation are not accepted as substitutes for consent.

12. References

Style: Vancouver (ICMJE), numbered in order of first appearance in the text, with superscript Arabic numerals placed after punctuation. Journal titles abbreviated per the NLM Catalog. List all authors up to six; for seven or more, list the first six followed by et al. Include a DOI for every reference that has one.

Examples

• Journal article: Sharma R, Iqbal N, Petrov A, Kaur H, Demir E, Zhang L, et al. Empirical antibiotic strategy in community-acquired pneumonia: a multicentre cohort study. Indian J Med Res. 2025;161(4):412–21.
• Book: Kumar V, Abbas AK, Aster JC. Robbins and Cotran pathologic basis of disease. 10th ed. Philadelphia: Elsevier; 2021.
• Web resource: World Health Organization. Global tuberculosis report 2024 [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; 2024 [cited 2026 Aug 12].

13. Authorship

IEJMS follows the four ICMJE criteria. An author must meet all four:

1. Substantial contribution to conception or design, or to acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data; and
2. Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and
3. Final approval of the version to be published; and
4. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Every submission must include a CRediT contributor statement assigning each author one or more of the fourteen CRediT roles.

14. Ethics

• 14.1 Human participants. All research involving human participants must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki (2013 revision) and must have been approved by an institutional review board or independent ethics committee before the work began.
• 14.2 Informed consent. State that informed consent was obtained from every participant.
• 14.3 Consent to publish identifiable material. Requires signed consent for publication from the patient, or from next of kin where the patient is deceased or lacks capacity.
• 14.4 Animal research. Complete the ARRIVE 2.0 checklist.
• 14.5 Registration. Clinical trials must be registered prospectively, before enrolment of the first participant, in CTRI, ClinicalTrials.gov or another WHO ICTRP primary registry. Systematic reviews should be registered in PROSPERO before data extraction.
• 14.6 Biological material and biosafety. State approvals for work with human tissue, biobank material, recombinant DNA, or biological agents.

15. Required declarations

Every submission must include the following, placed after the Conclusions:

• Author contributions (CRediT roles)
• Conflict of interest statement
• Funding statement
• Data availability statement
• Ethical approval
• Consent to publish
• Registration (trial or PROSPERO number)
• AI use disclosure
• Acknowledgements
• Confirmation that the work is original and is not under consideration elsewhere

16. Data sharing

IEJMS encourages deposition of underlying data in a recognised public repository (Zenodo, Dryad, figshare) with a DOI, subject to participant consent and legal constraints. Code underlying results should be deposited in a public repository with a permanent identifier and a stated licence. See the Research Data Sharing Policy.

17. Artificial intelligence

AI tools cannot be listed as authors and cannot hold accountability for a manuscript. Any use of generative AI in the preparation of the manuscript must be disclosed in a dedicated statement naming the tool, version and purpose. AI must not be used to generate or alter data, results or images. See the full AI Use Policy.

18. Preprints and prior publication

Posting a preprint to a recognised server before or during submission is permitted and is not treated as prior publication. Duplicate submission and salami-slicing of a single study into multiple papers are grounds for rejection.

19. Submission checklist

Upload as separate files:

• Title page (with all identifying information)
• Anonymised main manuscript
• Tables (if not in the manuscript file)
• Figures (individual high-resolution files)
• Completed reporting-guideline checklist
• Cover letter
• Ethics approval letter
• Trial or PROSPERO registration confirmation
• Consent-to-publish forms
• Permission letters for reproduced material

20. Peer review and decisions

All submissions undergo editorial screening for scope, ethics compliance and similarity. Manuscripts passing screening are sent for double-blind review. The full process is set out on the Peer Review Process page.

21. After acceptance

Proofs are sent to the corresponding author and must be returned within 72 hours. Authors retain copyright. Articles are published open access under CC BY 4.0. Corrections and retractions follow COPE flowcharts.

22. Contact

Editorial office: managing_editor@iejms.scienceroot.in