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Author Guidelines
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MISSION
CONTEMPORARY SURGERY strives to be the practical, peer-reviewed, current interactive resource dedicated to enhancing the surgeon's practice.
Authors should emphasize straightforward presentation and subjects of immediate applicability. In reviewing manuscripts for publication, we ask how, whether, and to what degree will the manuscript help practicing surgeons. CONTEMPORARY SURGERY accepts original papers only. Authors will be asked to sign an Author Agreement assigning rights and warranting originality to CONTEMPORARY SURGERY. Please submit proposals for articles to Richard Kirkner, Editor, at richard.kirkner@dowdenhealth.com.
Streaming Internet Video
Submitting video with your manuscript enhances the chances of publication significantly. Video provides a unique Web-based complement to the print article. We're in the process of building our Video Library.
To enhance the presentation of an article on the Internet, we ask authors to submit a streaming digital video clip no longer than 10 minutes. Video clips can be submitted via CD-ROM to Deborah A. Reale, Managing Editor, 110 Summit Ave., Montvale, NJ 07645. Submissions should include manuscript number from Manuscript Central submission site along with permission for the clip to appear on the web site.
Evidence-based surgery
Articles should include a sidebar that lists 4-5 practice recommendations and the level of evidence that supports them based on the Oxford Centre for Evidence-based Medicine-Levels of Evidence as adopted by the American College of Surgeons.1
http://www.facs.org/fellows_info/bulletin/2003/apr03bullet.html
Electronic submissions
We now require that all articles are submitted through our electronic submission web site at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/cs.
Manuscript Preparation
- Length. Invited review articles should be 1500-2000 words (6-8 pages, double-spaced); unsolicited Case Quizzes, 1000-1500 words (4-6 pages, double-spaced); including sidebars, but excluding figure legends, references and tables. No more than 20 references. References should be from the past 10 years.
- Electronic submission. Submit manuscripts, figures, and tables electronically to http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/cs. Some rules for electronic submissions:
- DO NOT include authors' names in the main document as peer reviewers will access this.
- DO NOT submit a title page as a separate document.
- LABEL FIGURES by number-Fig 1, Fig 2, and so on.
- INCLUDE FIGURE LEGENDS.
- Corresponding author. Designate one author to handle all inquiries with the journal editors and be available for editorial consultation during the peer-review and editing process.
- Include "FastTracks." Provide a bulleted list of 3 or 4 take-home points.
- Sidebars. This device gives prominence to a secondary topic that deserves special treatment outside the larger article. Examples are brief case reports or cursory reviews of recent trials.
- Review articles. Include an up-to-date review of literature, and two or more case reports that illustrate management.
- Case Quizzes. Articles about a single case should include a discussion of the differential diagnosis and treatment options, and how the author arrived at his/her determination for each. Case Quizzes should also include 2 questions with 4 multiple-choice answers.
- Style. CONTEMPORARY SURGERY strives to give busy practitioners practical information in a concise format. Our tone is less formal and more direct than that of academic journals; easy-to-read yet highly informative. CONTEMPORARY SURGERY follows AMA style (American Medical Association Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors. 9th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. 1998).
- Evidence-based practices. Include a sidebar that lists 4-5 practice recommendations and the level of evidence that supports them based on the Oxford Centre for Evidence-based Medicine-Levels of Evidence as adopted by the American College of Surgeons.1 http://www.facs.org/fellows_info/bulletin/2003/apr03bullet.html
- References. Appropriate literature citations are critical to enhance the credibility of a manuscript. Authors are asked to limit references to 25 total, and please use citations published within the past 10 years (except when necessary). Number references in chronological order as they appear in the text.
- Figures. When submitting electronically, images must be formatted in .jpg or .tif and be at least 300 dpi in resolution when enlarged to 4"x6" in size. Power Point images or those embedded in Word documents cannot be used.
- Label figures chronologically as they appear in the text.
- A letter of permission for use must accompany photographs of identifiable patients from the subject, or key features will be obscured in print. Clearly mark figure numbers and direction of alignment (ie, top).
- Legends for figures. Please refer to the figures in the text, and include figure legends in the same document as the manuscript, listing them after references. Clearly label each legend with the appropriate figure number.
- Video presentation for Internet. If available, please submit with your paper a streaming digital video clip, no longer than 10 minutes. Please submit video clips on CD-ROM to Deborah A. Reale, Managing Editor, 110 Summit Ave., Montvale, NJ 07645. Please include the manuscript number from Manuscript Central submission site along with permission for the clip to appear on the web site.
- Tables. Please place tables in the same document as the manuscript, and list them after the figure legends.
- Permissions. If any figure or table has been published previously, please obtain and send to us written permission from the publisher to allow us to re-publish the work.
Disclosure
Upon acceptance for publication, authors will be asked to complete an Author's Data Sheet and Disclosure Form. Authors are expected to disclose any affiliations or financial arrangements with any company whose product appears in the manuscript or with any company making a competing product. If no such affiliation or arrangement exists, simply state, "The author reports no affiliation or financial arrangement with any of the companies mentioned in this article or with their competitors."
Peer review
Two or more peer reviewers will review the manuscript after it is submitted. Further revision may be in order. Our review process is now entirely handled electronically.
Editing
After author revisions are submitted, the manuscript will then be edited for style and grammar. Manuscript sections may be rewritten and reorganized. The editors go to great lengths to respect the author's voice and ideas while creating an article that is highly readable. Authors will be asked to again review the edited manuscript and approve any changes before it goes to press.
Departments
CONTEMPORARY SURGERY accepts submissions for these departments that appear in the journal on a regular basis:
- “Pearls.” This department covers recent developments in surgical procedures and approaches, or in diagnostic and surgical equipment. Because the procedures and tools under discussion may not be familiar to many surgeons, this department typically is heavily illustrated with figures, diagrams, and tables. The editorial approach is hands-on and how-to. Length varies from 250 to 1000 words, depending on the subject. Video is encouraged.
- “Real World.” Authors may submit essays of 1000-1500 words of non-clinical issues that are relevant and germane to surgical practice. Some examples include pay for performance, credentialing, reimbursement issues.
- “Dilemma.” This is a challenging case presentation in which neither the diagnosis nor the management is clear-cut. Please review examples in previous issues before submitting a case. Follow guidelines for manuscript submissions.
Have an idea? If you have an idea for an article or new department, please contact Richard Kirkner, Editor, at richard.kirkner@dowdenhealth.com.
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