CARTILAGE
We are proud to announce that CART is now indexed in MEDLINE!
CARTILAGE is a peer-reviewed, open access journal which publishes articles related to the musculoskeletal system with particular attention to cartilage repair, development, function, degeneration, transplantation, and rehabilitation. The journal is a forum for the exchange of ideas for the many types of researchers and clinicians involved in cartilage biology and repair. A primary objective of CARTILAGE is to foster the cross-fertilization of the findings between clinical and basic sciences throughout the various disciplines involved in cartilage repair.
The journal publishes full length original manuscripts on all types of cartilage including articular, nasal, auricular, tracheal/bronchial, and intervertebral disc fibrocartilage. Manuscripts on clinical and laboratory research are welcome. Review articles, editorials, and letters are also encouraged.
This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Open access article processing charge (APC) information
Publication in the journal is subject to payment of an article processing charge (APC). The APC serves to support the journal and ensures that articles are freely accessible online in perpetuity under a Creative Commons licences.
The APC for this journal is $2800.
The APC is payable when a manuscript is accepted after peer review, before it is published. The APC is subject to taxes where applicable. Please see further details here.
The aim of CARTILAGE is to bridge a gap in the literature by focusing on both clinical and basic science perspectives of the diverse disciplines (e.g., developmental biology, biomechanics, imaging, matrix biology, tissue regeneration) in cartilage research and repair (including joint protection and rehabilitation). The journal is a peer-reviewed forum for the exchange of ideas for the many types of researchers and clinicians involved in cartilage biology and repair investigations and applications. CARTILAGE publishes articles on cartilage biology including repair, development, function, and transplantation. The journal publishes full-length original manuscripts on all aspects of cartilage including, but not limited to articular, meniscus, tracheal/bronchial, auricular, nasal, rib, and growth plate. Articles on clinical, laboratory, and therapeutic research are published as well as review articles, editorials, and letters.
Mats Brittberg, MD, PhD | Kungsbacka, Sweden |
Siegfried Trattnig | Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria |
Jonathan Bjerre -Bastos, MD, PhD | Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Copenhagen University Hospital - Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg |
Jiyong Ahn, MD, PhD | The Foot & Ankle Research & Innovation Laboratory Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School, USA |
Jari Dahmen | Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, Netherlands |
Daniel A. Grande | The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research–Department of Orthopaedics, NY, USA |
Dr. Stephen J. Kominsky, D.P.M. FACFAS | Clinical Professor, Department of Surgery, George Washington University Medical Center, DC, USA |
Jiao Jiao Li | University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia |
Stefan Marlovits | Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria |
Wayne Mcllwraith | Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA |
Michele Mercurio | Magna Graecia University & R. Dulbecco University Hospital of Catanzaro, Italy |
Stefan Nehrer | Donau Universität Krems, Krems, Austria |
Rafael Inigo Pavlovich | CIMA Hospital, Sonora, Mexico |
Eleonora M.C. Trecca, MD, PhD | IRCCS Hospital Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, FG, Italy |
Tim Welting | Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands |
Karl Fredrik Almqvist | Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium |
Gunnar Andersson | Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA |
Peter Behrens | University Clinic of Schleswig-Holstein, Lubeck, Germany |
William D. Bugbee | Scripps Clinic–Orthopaedics, La Jolla, CA, USA |
Arnold Caplan | Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA |
Christian Lattermann, MD | University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA |
Moises Cohen | Cohen Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Institute, Sao Paulo, Brazil |
Brian J. Cole, MD, MBA | Chicago, IL, United States |
Jennifer Elisseeff | John Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA |
Alberto Gobbi | Orthopaedic Arthroscopic Surgery International, Milan, Italy |
Andreas H. Gomoll, MD | New York, NY, United States |
Dominik Haudenschild | UC Davis, Davis, CA, USA |
Caroline Hoemann | Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
Anthony Hollander | University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK |
James Hui | National University Hospital, Singapore |
Ernst Hunziker | University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland |
Mark Hurtig | University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada |
Jukka Jurvelin | University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland |
Bert R. Mandelbaum, MD | Santa Monica Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Group, Santa Monica, CA, USA |
Rodrigo Mardones, MD | Clinica Las Condes, Santiago, Chile |
Tom Minas | Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA |
Kai Mithoefer, MD | Harvard Medical School, Chestnut Hill, MA, USA |
Norimasa Nakamura | Osaka, Japan |
Mitsuo Ochi | Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan |
Hollis G. Potter | Chief, Division of Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY, USA |
Henri Robert | North Mayenne Hospital, Mayenne, France |
Robert Sah | University of California, San Diego, CA, USA |
Daniël B.F. Saris | Rochester MN, USA |
Eric Strauss | New York University, New York, USA |
Jian Yao | JY Medical (Shanghai), China |
Rit Apinyankul, MD | Khon Kaen University, Thailand |
Andrea Bailey, PhD, Grad Dip Phys | The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital, UK |
Bhushan Borotikar, PhD | SCMIA, Symbiosis International University, Pune, India |
Mh Busra Fauzi, PhD | Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Malaysia |
Florian Forelli, PT, MSc, PhD | Orthosport Rehab Center, Domont, France |
Dong Ha Lee, MD | Pusan National University, Busan, South Korea |
Chia-Hao Hsu, MD | Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan |
Kyla Huebner, MD,PhD | Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada |
Ulunay Kanatli, MD | Gazi University School of Medicine, Turkey |
Jun-Mo Kim, PhD | Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Republic of Korea |
Ilya Klabukov, PhD | National Medical Research Radiological Center, Russia |
Dragan Marinkovic, PhD | University of Novi Sad, Serbia |
Mattia Alessio Mazzola, MD | San Raffaele Reserch Hospital, Milan, Italy |
Antimo Moretti, MD | University of Campania ‘Luigi Vanvitelli’, Caserta, Italy |
Christopher Nagelli, PhD, MS | Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA |
Matthias Peiffer, MD | Orthopaedic Surgery Resident, University Hospital Ghent, Belgium. PhD Research Fellow, UGent-FARIL, Massachusetts General Hospital-Harvard Medical School, USA. FARIL International Ambassador – Belgium |
Charalampos Pitsilos, MD, MSc | Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, G. Gennimatas General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece |
Shahid Rasool, MS | Hamdard Institute of Medical Sciences & Research, New Delhi, India |
Gundula Schulze-Tanzil, VMD | Paracelsus Medical University, Austria |
Dexter Seow, MB BCh, MRCSI | National University Health System, Singapore |
Muhammad Tariq Rafiq, MD, PhD | Lahore University of Biological and Applied Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan |
Mustafa Unal, PhD | Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA |
Bayram UNVER, PT, PhD | Dokuz Eylül University, Turkey |
Arman Vahabi, MD | Ege University School of Medicine, Turkey |
Prem Venkatesan, PT, PhD | Manipal College of Health Professions, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Karnataka, India |
Thiago Alberto Vivacqua, MD, MSc | Hospital Rios D'Or, Brazil |
Kai-Chiang Yang, PhD | Taipei Medical University, Taiwan |
Roy Altman | UCLA Health, Los Angeles, CA, USA |
The objective of CARTILAGE is to bridge a gap in the literature by focusing on cartilage research from both clinical and basic science perspectives. The journal serves as a focal point and a forum for the exchange of ideas for the many researchers and practitioners involved in cartilage biology and repair therapy. CARTILAGE will publish articles related to cartilage repair, growth of cartilage, cartilage function, and cartilage transplantation, including regeneration. A primary objective is to foster the cross-fertilization of the findings from clinical and basic sciences of the myriad disciplines involved in cartilage research (e.g., developmental biology, biomechanics, imaging, matrix biology, tissue regeneration) and repair (e.g., joint protection). The journal will publish full-length original manuscripts (4000 or fewer words) and brief communications (1500 or fewer words) on all aspects of cartilage including, but not limited to articular, meniscus, airway, auricular, nasal septum, rib, and growth plate. Manuscripts may address clinical, laboratory, surgical approaches, and therapeutic research. Narrative reviews will be considered when they describe cutting-edge and evolving developments and discuss these developments in light of underlying theory. Systematic reviews will be considered when they are especially suitable for critiquing and summarizing evidence relevant to focused questions. Editorials and letters are encouraged.
Editorial Policy
Manuscripts are accepted for consideration on the condition that they are contributed solely to CARTILAGE. No substantial part of a paper (except for a scientific abstract or poster) may have been published elsewhere. All work must be original. Receipt of your manuscript by the journal will be acknowledged and a decision regarding its status made as soon as possible. All manuscripts are subject to editorial review. Manuscripts will be initially reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or an Associate Editor. Some manuscripts that are deemed inappropriate for the journal or very low priority by the editorial staff may be returned without review. If eligible for publication, the manuscript will be reviewed by 2 or more external, independent reviewers. Revisions, if requested, will require resubmission within 90 days, unless otherwise specified. Manuscripts must be written in acceptable English. Manuscripts submitted in poor English will be returned without review (see “English Language Editing Services” section below).
If you have any questions about publishing with Sage, please visit the Sage Journal Solutions Portal.
- Manuscript Submission
1.1 Open Access
1.2 Article Processing Charge (APCs)
1.3 Authorship
1.4 Acknowledgments
1.5 Conflict of Interest Statement
1.6 Reviewers
1.7 Publication Ethics
1.7.1 Contributor's Publishing Agreement
1.7.2 Plagiarism
1.7.3 Prior Publication
1.8 Permissions - Submission Letter
2.1 Revisions - Manuscript Format
3.1 Title Page
3.2 Abstract
3.3 Body of the Text
3.3.1 The Introduction
3.3.2 The Methods
3.3.3 Research Ethics and Patient Consent
3.3.4 Statistics
3.3.5 The Results
3.3.6 The Discussion
3.4 Figures and Tables
3.5 Abbreviations and Units
3.6 Headings
3.6.1 Names of Organisms
3.6.2 Non-English Words and Phrases
3.6.3 Quotation Marks
3.6.4 Numbers
3.6.5 Capitalization
3.6.6 Footnotes
3.7 In-Text Citations
3.8 Reference List
3.9 Preparation of Supplementary Data - Other Types of Submissions
4.1 Short Communications
4.2 Editorials, Review Articles, and Special Articles
4.3 Letters - English Language Editing Services
- Orcid
- On acceptance and publication
- Promoting your article
- Appealing the publication decision
Please read and follow the instructions to authors outlined below. Failure to follow these instructions will delay processing of the manuscript.
Manuscripts are to be submitted at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/cart, where authors will be required to set up an online account in the Sage Track system powered by ScholarOne. Authors will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of all manuscript files. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revision, will take place via e-mail. Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a Journal Contributor's Publishing Agreement. An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming acceptance of the manuscript together with a link to the online version of this agreement.
CART is an open access, peer-reviewed journal. Each article accepted by peer review is made freely available online immediately upon publication, is published under a Creative Commons license and will be hosted online in perpetuity. Publication costs of the journal are covered by the collection of article processing charges which are paid by the funder, institution or author of each manuscript upon acceptance. There is no charge for submitting a paper to the journal.
For general information on open access at Sage please visit the Open Access page or view our Open Access FAQs.
1.2 Article Processing Charge (APCs)
If, after peer review, your manuscript is accepted for publication, a one-time article processing charge (APC) is payable. This APC covers the cost of publication and ensures that your article will be freely available online in perpetuity under a Creative Commons license.
The APC for this journal is $2,650.
The APC for Letters to the Editor is waived.
The article processing charge (APC) is payable when a manuscript is accepted after peer review, before it is published. The APC is subject to taxes where applicable. Please see further details here.
Your article may be eligible for a full or partial waiver due to Sage’s participation in initiatives aimed at increasing accessibility to publication from lower-income countries. Check here for further information about discounts and to see whether you may be eligible.
Papers should only be submitted for consideration once consent is given by all contributing authors. Those submitting papers should carefully check that all those whose work contributed to the paper are acknowledged as contributing authors.
The list of authors should include all those who can legitimately claim authorship. This is all those who:
(i) made a substantial contribution to the concept and design, acquisition of data or analysis and interpretation of data,
(ii) drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content,
(iii) approved the version to be published.Please refer to the ICMJE Authorship guidelines.
Please note that AI chatbots, for example ChatGPT, should not be listed as authors. For more information see the policy on Use of ChatGPT and generative AI tools.
Any acknowledgments should appear first at the end of your article prior to your Declaration of Conflicting Interests (if applicable), any notes and your References.
All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an ‘Acknowledgments’ section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help, writing assistance, or a department chair who provided only general support. Authors should disclose whether they had any writing assistance and identify the entity that paid for this assistance.
1.5 Conflict of Interest Statement
If the author or co-authors have financial interest in products relevant to the manuscript, the nature of these should be disclosed after the reference section. Furthermore, in the Journal Contributor's Publishing Agreement sent out to the authors when a paper has been accepted, the authors need to very carefully declare if they have any affiliations with or any involvement in any company, organization or business indicating any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in their manuscript.
CARTILAGE is committed to delivering high quality, fast peer-review for your paper, and as such has partnered with Publons. Publons is a third party service that seeks to track, verify and give credit for peer review. Reviewers for CARTILAGE can opt in to Publons in order to claim their reviews or have them automatically verified and added to their reviewer profile. Reviewers claiming credit for their review will be associated with the relevant journal, but the article name, reviewer’s decision and the content of their review is not published on the site. For more information visit the Publons website.
The Editor or members of the Editorial Board may occasionally submit their own manuscripts for possible publication in the journal. In these cases, the peer review process will be managed by alternative members of the Board and the submitting Editor/Board member will have no involvement in the decision-making process
Sage is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view the Publication Ethics page on the Sage Author Gateway.
1.7.1 Contributor's Publishing Agreement
Before publication Sage requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. CART publishes manuscripts under Creative Commons licenses. The standard license for the journal is Creative Commons by Attribution Non-Commercial (CC BY-NC), which allows others to re-use the work without permission as long as the work is properly referenced and the use is non-commercial. For more information, you are advised to visit Sage's OA licenses page. Alternative license arrangements are available, for example, to meet particular funder mandates, made at the author’s request.
CARTILAGE and Sage take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of published articles. Equally, we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. Submitted articles may be checked with duplication-checking software. Where an article, for example, is found to have plagiarised other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with insufficient acknowledgement, or where the authorship of the article is contested, we reserve the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum (correction); retracting the article; taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of the author's institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; or taking appropriate legal action.
If material has been previously published it is not generally acceptable for publication in a Sage journal. However, there are certain circumstances where previously published material can be considered for publication. Please refer to the guidance on the Sage Author Gateway or if in doubt, contact the Editor at the address given below.
Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere before they are published in CARTILAGE. A copy of the written permission must be included with the manuscript submission.
For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions on the Sage Journal Author Gateway.
The manuscript is to be accompanied by a cover letter that states (1) all the authors have read and approved the final manuscript, (2) all authors have read and approve of the data being presented in the manuscript, (3) the full name, address, e-mail address, phone, and fax number of the individual to whom correspondence concerning the manuscript is to be sent. The cover letter should be addressed to:
Mats Brittberg, MD, PhD
Editor-in-Chief, CARTILAGE
Ringvägen 80
Varberg, Halland, 43243
Sweden
Phone: (+46) 702183652
Fax: (+46) 300465415
mats.brittberg@telia.com
When submitting your revised manuscript, you will be able to respond to the comments made by the reviewer(s) in the space provided in the author center. You can use this space to document any changes you make to the original manuscript. In order to expedite the processing of the revised manuscript, please be as specific as possible in your response to the reviewer(s). All answers to the reviewers questions should be presented point to point and the answers should be positioned at the end of the manuscript. Changes should be notated in the manuscript with a yellow text marker.
Manuscript format should comply with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors' Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals (http://www.icmje.org) except where otherwise specifically indicated. In all matters of style, please consult the Manual of Style (10th ed.) published by the American Medical Association. Number each page sequentially, including the title page, abstract, text, references, figure legends, and tables.
Each of the following sections should be included: Title page (with funding declaration), Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgments (when appropriate), References, Conflict of Interest statement, Figure legends, each individual figure and table. All text should be submitted as MS Word (*.doc) files.
On the title page, please include all of the following:
- A concise and informative title (do not use abbreviations or acronyms).
- The names, degrees, and professional affiliation (position, department, institution, place) of all authors.
- The name of the institution where the work reported was done.
- Acknowledgment of grant support when appropriate.
- Complete mailing address, telephone, and fax of corresponding author; e-mail addresses of all authors.
Abstracts should be fewer than 250 words. Abstracts for original contributions should be divided into sections, according to (1) Objective; (2) Design—if clinical to include setting, selection of patients, details on the intervention, outcome measures, etc.; if laboratory research to include details on methods; (3) Results—data to be included (comments such as "will be presented" or "to be discussed" are not acceptable); (4) Conclusions. Abstracts should summarize the main points of the paper and be descriptive, narrative, informative, and include only information that is in the article. Avoid abbreviations or spell out on first use.
Classification criteria should be reported on patients (where relevant) by a brief description of the clinical features of patients and by reference to the criteria used.
Provide 3-5 pertinent keywords at the end of the abstract.
The text of the paper should be no longer than 15-20 double-spaced typed pages in most cases.
For most original manuscripts the subheadings include Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion.
The Introduction should be no longer than 2-3 paragraphs; it should provide background and rationale for the study and specifically state the study’s objectives or hypotheses.
The Methods section should describe how participants were assembled and selected, then describe study procedures including any interventions, measurements, and data collection techniques.
3.3.3 Research Ethics and Patient Consent
Medical research involving human subjects must be conducted according to the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki.
Submitted manuscripts should conform to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals, and all papers reporting animal and/or human studies must state in the methods section that the relevant Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board provided (or waived) approval. Please ensure that you have provided the full name and institution of the review committee, in addition to the approval number.
For research articles, authors are also required to state in the methods section whether participants provided informed consent and whether the consent was written or verbal.
Information on informed consent to report individual cases or case series should be included in the manuscript text. A statement is required regarding whether written informed consent for patient information and images to be published was provided by the patient(s) or a legally authorized representative.
Please also refer to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Protection of Research Participants.
All research involving animals submitted for publication must be approved by an ethics committee with oversight of the facility in which the studies were conducted. The Journal has adopted the ARRIVE guidelines.
Clinical trials
CARTILAGE conforms to the ICMJE requirement that clinical trials are registered in a WHO-approved public trials registry at or before the time of first patient enrolment as a condition of consideration for publication. The trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract.]
Reporting guidelines
The relevant EQUATOR Network reporting guidelines should be followed depending on the type of study. For example, all randomized controlled trials submitted for publication should include a completed CONSORT flow chart as a cited figure and the completed CONSORT checklist should be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses should include the completed PRISMA flow chart as a cited figure and the completed PRISMA checklist should be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. The EQUATOR wizard can help you identify the appropriate guideline.
Other resources can be found at NLM’s Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives.
Research Data
The journal is committed to facilitating openness, transparency and reproducibility of research, and has the following research data sharing policy. For more information, including FAQs please visit the Sage Research Data policy pages.
Subject to appropriate ethical and legal considerations, authors are encouraged to:
- share your research data in a relevant public data repository
- include a data availability statement linking to your data. If it is not possible to share your data, we encourage you to consider using the statement to explain why it cannot be shared.
- cite this data in your research
There should be a statistical subsection defining the statistical analysis and software used.
The Results section should include a full description of the study sample followed by the primary, secondary, subgroup, and adverse event findings. The Discussion should begin with the key findings of the study and should stress what is new in the paper and relate the author’s findings to the existing literature.
The Discussion should show how the findings add to the existing knowledge base of the subject under study, include the limitations of the study, and mention crucial research directions.
For guidance on the preparation of illustrations, pictures and graphs in electronic format, please visit Sage’s Manuscript Submission Guidelines.
Figures supplied in color will appear in color online.
All tables and figures should be referenced in the main text in order in which they appear. Furthermore, figures must meet the image resolution requirements of the publisher, Sage Publishing.
Files for line-based drawings (no grayscale) should ideally be submitted in the format they were originally created; if submitting scanned versions, files should be 1200 dots per inch (dpi).
Color photos should be submitted at 600 dpi and black-and-white photos at 300 dpi.
Artwork includes charts and graphs, maps, photographs, line art, and tables with 17 or more columns. Submitting your artwork in high-resolution electronic format helps us to produce your work to the best possible standards, ensuring accuracy, clarity, and a high level of detail.
All tables should be submitted in the program they were originally created (Microsoft Word's table application files or Excel spreadsheets are preferred). All tables must be cited in the text. Number each table (Table 1, Table 2) in order of their text citation. Each table should be typed on a separate page and should have a title in sufficient detail to allow understanding without reference to the text.
All image files for figures should be labelled with the Figure number (label each part if figures include multiple parts).
It is important to include figure legends in the text. The figure legend should include descriptions of each figure part and identify the meaning of any symbols or arrows. Terms used for labels and in the legend must be consistent with those in the text.
Position of figures in the text should be marked in the manuscript and cited in the text in order of appearance. Arabic numbering should be used. Each figure should be submitted on a separate page. Figure legends should be included at the end of the manuscript. A legend must accompany each figure.
Figures are acceptable as TIFF, EPS, or JPEG files. Electronic line art should be of at least 1200 dpi resolution, and electronic photo or grayscale figures should be of at least 300 dpi resolution. Please do not submit image files in PDF format.
If you want to know how to set Powerpoint to produce a 300 or 600 dpi TIFF picture from a slide which normally is set at a low dpi, you may go to: http://www.hos.ufl.edu/meteng/HansonWebpagecontents/TIFF%20Image%20Prot.html.
Some figures, especially charts, graphs and line drawings, will be reduced in size for publication. All numbers, letters, and symbols should be large enough to remain legible when reduced. Arrows should be added to radiographs, histology, and other illustrations for clarity. Figures not properly prepared will be returned to the author for revision.
While authors should avoid unfamiliar abbreviations, a limited number of clearly defined abbreviations may be used. List the full term on its first appearance followed by the abbreviation in parentheses. Once identified, the abbreviation should be used consistently throughout the text. If many abbreviations are used in the text, a glossary of abbreviations should be appended to the manuscript.
Avoid using abbreviations in the title and subtitle, unless space considerations require an exception or unless the title or subtitle includes the name of a group that is best known by its acronym. In both cases the abbreviation should be expanded in the abstract and at first appearance in the text.
Measurements should be expressed in metric units wherever possible, and along with physical and chemical quantities, should be abbreviated as recommended in the instructions to authors of the current volume of Journal of Biological Chemistry (http://www.jbc.org/misc/itoa.TI.dtl).
Symbols of units of measurement must accord with the Systéme International (SI). Abbreviations for SI units and statistical terms are those in Baron DN (ed.) Units, Symbols and Abbreviations: A Guide for Medical and Scientific Editors and Authors, 5th ed. London: Royal Society of Medicine Press. Preferred alternative units may be given in parentheses.
It is advisable to begin article text on a new page headed by the full article title.
Title
Centered / Flush Left
Upper lower case, bold
First Level Heading
Flush Left
ALL CAPS, bold
Second Level Heading
Flush Left
Upper lower case, bold
The Third Level Heading
Paragraph indented
Upper lower case, bold
Fourth level
Paragraph indented
Upper lower case, Italicized
Items to Avoid in Headings: Avoid using a single abbreviation as a heading, even if the abbreviation has been expanded earlier in the text.
Avoid expanding abbreviations for the first time in a heading. Spell the abbreviation out in the heading if that is its first appearance and introduce the abbreviation, if appropriate, at the next appearance of the term.
Avoid citing figures or tables and references in headings. Cite them in the appropriate place in the text that follows the heading.
In all titles, follow the style recommended for capitalization and use of italics in scientific names of organisms given in sections 10.3.6 and 15.14 of the AMA Manual of Style. Use roman type for genus and species names in book titles.
3.6.2 Non-English Words and Phrases
In all titles, follow the guidelines recommended for use of italics or roman in non-English words and phrases in section 12.1.1 of the AMA Manual of Style. For example, even if In Vivo or In Vitro were set italic in a cited title, JAMA and the Archives Journals would set these in roman type.
If quotation marks are required in the title or subtitle, they should be double, not single.
In scientific writing, and in the title, numerals are used to express numbers in most circumstances. Exceptions are the following:
- Numbers that begin a sentence, title, subtitle, or heading, exceptions may be made for years
- Common fractions
- Accepted usage such as idiomatic expressions and numbers used as pronouns
- Other uses of “one” in running text
- Ordinals first through ninth
- Numbers spelled out in quotes or published titles
Capitalize the first letter of each major word in titles and subtitles. Do not capitalize articles (eg, a, an, the), prepositions of 3 or fewer letters, coordinating conjunctions (eg, and, or, for, nor, yet, so, but), or the to in infinitives. Do capitalize a 2-letter verb, such as Is or Be. Exceptions are made for some expressions, such as compound terms from languages other than English (which require that you capitalize all parts of the expression) and phrasal verbs. Also, in the case of temporary hyphenated compound, in which each part of the hyphenated term carries equal weight, capitalize both words (eg, Cost-Benefit Analysis).
Footnotes should be avoided in text, but are allowed on the title page. They are placed in the following order: author affiliations, death of an author, information about members of a group, corresponding author contact information.
For each text citation there must be a corresponding citation in the reference list and for each reference list citation there must be a corresponding text citation. Cite references in consecutive order using superscript Arabic numbers.
Each superscript must match one reference in the Reference List.
Use commas to separate multiple citation numbers in text. Corresponding references should be listed in numeric order at the end of the document. Unpublished works and personal communications (oral, written, and electronic) should be cited parenthetically (and not on the reference list). Such citations from someone other than the authors can only be published if a signed letter of permission is provided.
Superscript numbers are placed outside periods and commas, and inside colons and semicolons.
When more than 2 references are cited at a given place in the manuscript, use hyphens to join the first and last numbers of a closed series; use commas without space to separate other parts of a multiple citation.
For example:
- As reported previously, 1,3-8,19
- The derived data were as follows3,4:
Page numbers may be used in the superscript numbers; they are enclosed in parentheses.
Page numbers are required for direct quotations.
The reference style is based on the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals (http://www.icmje.org). Authors are responsible for the accuracy of references and statistical computations.
Basic rules for the reference list are:
- The title “References” is centered at the top of a separate page at the end of the document.
- Entries are preceded by their number and are given in numerical order as they are cited in the text.
- The reference list should be double-spaced. Single-space between entries.
- The second line and all subsequent lines of each item in the reference list should be indented (hanging indent).
- Do not use “et al.” in the Reference list at the end; names of all authors of a publication should be listed there.
Here are a few examples of commonly found references. For more examples please check AMA (10th Ed).
Books
Book
Author(s) separated by commas. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher; year.
Goldberg L, Elliot DL. Exercise for Prevention and Treatment of Illness. Philadelphia, Pa: FA Davis Co; 1994.
Edited book
Author(s), eds. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher; year.
Armitage JO, Antman KH, eds. High Dose Cancer Therapy: Pharmacology, Hematopoietins, Stem Cells. Baltimore, Md: Williams & Wilkins; 1995.
Chapter or article from a book
Author(s) of article. Title of article. In: Editor's name, ed. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher; Year: Chapter or page number.
Gamble VN. On becoming a physician: a dream not deferred. In: White EC, ed. The Black Women's Health Book: Speaking for Ourselves. Seattle, Wash: Seal Press; 1990:52-64.
Articles in Journals
AMA style requires the use of standard abbreviations for all references, when applicable. Abbreviations for many common medical journals can be found in the AMA Manual of Style (pp.473-479). Additional abbreviations can be searched in the PubMed Journal Database (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/journals?itool=sidebar).
One author
(do not include issue number or month unless volumes are not consecutively numbered)
Author. Article title. Journal Title. Month Year;Volume:Inclusive page numbers.
Angelo J. A survey of persons who use integrated control devices. Assist Technol. 1998;10:77-83.
Articles in Online Journals
The preferred citation style for an electronic journal uses a DOI (digital object identifier). The DOI provides a persistent link to the electronic item and is considered to be more stable than a URL. If the DOI is not given on the full text article or in the citation, use a DOI lookup tool to locate it (http://www.crossref.org/guestquery/) or use the format for an article without a DOI.
Note that when using a DOI, no access date or URL are used.
Article from online journals with DOI available Author. Title of article. Name of Journal. Year;vol(issue):pages. doi:xx.xxxx.
Florez HR, Martinez RL. Outdoor exercise reduces the risk of hypovitaminosis D in the obese. J Steroid Biochem Mol Bio. 2007;103(3-5):679-681. doi:10.1016 /j.jsbmb.2006.12.032.
Article from online journals without DOI available
(The accessed date will often be the only date available.)
Author. Title of article. Name of Journal. Year;vol(issue);pages. URL. Published date. Updated date. Accessed date.
Hay PJ. Understanding bulimia. Aust Fam Physician. 2007;36(9):708-712. http://www.racgp.org.au/afp/200709/18554. Accessed October 11, 2009.
Web pages Author or responsible body. Title of item cited. Name of website. URL. Published date. Updated date. Accessed date.
World Health Organization. Saving the future generation in Darfur. World Health Organization. http://www.who.int/features/2007/ child_health/en/index.html. Published July 7, 2007. Accessed October 11, 2009.
Other media
(Use for DVDs, videos, cd-roms, and other media formats.)
Author. Title [format]. Publisher place: Publisher; Year.
Holzknect J. History of physical therapy in the United States [DVD]. New York, NY: Insight Media; 2007.
IMPORTANT NOTE: To encourage a faster production process of your article, you are requested to closely adhere to the points above for references. Otherwise, it will entail a long process of solving copyeditor’s queries and may directly affect the publication time of your article. In case of any question, please contact the journal editor.
3.9 Preparation of Supplementary Data
Supplementary materials offer the author additional possibilities to publish supporting applications, movies, animation sequences, high-resolution images, background datasets, sound clips, and more. Online articles will link to the material directly.
Acceptable video file types are QuickTime (*.mov), MPEG Movie (*.mpeg), and Miscrosoft AVI Video (*.avi); acceptable audio files include Windows Media Player (*.wma) and MP3 (*.mp3).
Authors submitting articles and wanting to present their work in a video with a few slides or are submitting articles that describe an operative technique are invited to submit a video to accompany and enhance the article. Video file size must be under 350MB for submission in SageTrack.
Submit supplementary material in electronic format together with the article. Please provide a concise and descriptive caption for each file. Place an "S" before supplementary table and figure numbers (e.g., Table S1).
Short papers may be submitted for the rapid communication of data of special interest. Such manuscripts, which should not exceed 1500 words and 15 references, should follow the general format described above with the following exceptions: Instead of a separate Abstract and Introduction, the Short Communication should begin with a brief paragraph stating the problem addressed and concluding with the major finding of the report; this paragraph will serve both as Introduction and Summary. Methods, Results and Discussion sections should be combined, and no more than 2 Figures and/or Tables should be included. Authors' names and addresses should appear at the end of the paper along with 3 keywords.
4.2 Editorials, Review Articles, and Special Articles
Authors are encouraged to submit brief reviews and editorials. All such articles are subject to the normal reviewing process. Editorials should be no longer than 8 typed pages exclusive of references.
Comments regarding articles published in the journal are solicited and should be sent as "Letter to the Editor." Such Letters, which should not be original communications (see Short Communications for the appropriate format for such manuscripts), are subject to editorial review. When a published article is subjected to comment or criticism, the authors of that article will be invited to write a letter in reply.
5. English Language Editing Services
Authors who would like to refine the use of English in their manuscripts might consider using Sage Language Services, which specializes in editing and correcting English-language manuscripts written by authors with a primary language other than English. Visit http://languageservices.sagepub.com/en/ for more information about Sage Language Services, pricing, and turnaround times, or to obtain a quote or submit a manuscript for language polishing. An author’s use of Sage Language Services in no way guarantees that his or her submission will ultimately be accepted. Any arrangement an author enters into will be exclusively between the author and Sage Language Services, and any costs incurred are the sole responsibility of the author.
As part of our commitment to ensuring an ethical, transparent and fair peer review process Sage is a supporting member of ORCID, the Open Researcher and Contributor ID. ORCID provides a unique and persistent digital identifier that distinguishes researchers from every other researcher, even those who share the same name, and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between researchers and their professional activities, ensuring that their work is recognized.
The collection of ORCID IDs from corresponding authors is now part of the submission process of this journal. If you already have an ORCID ID you will be asked to associate that to your submission during the online submission process. We also strongly encourage all co-authors to link their ORCID ID to their accounts in our online peer review platforms. It takes seconds to do: click the link when prompted, sign into your ORCID account and our systems are automatically updated. Your ORCID ID will become part of your accepted publication’s metadata, making your work attributable to you and only you. Your ORCID ID is published with your article so that fellow researchers reading your work can link to your ORCID profile and from there link to your other publications.
If you do not already have an ORCID ID please follow this link to create one or visit our ORCID homepage to learn more.
7. On acceptance and publication
If your paper is accepted for publication after peer review, you will first be asked to complete the contributor’s publishing agreement. Once your manuscript files have been checked for Sage Production, the corresponding author will be asked to pay the article processing charge (APC) via a payment link. Once the APC has been processed, your article will be prepared for publication and can appear online within an average of 30 days. Please note that no production work will occur on your paper until the APC has been received.
Publication is not the end of the process! You can help disseminate your paper and ensure it is as widely read and cited as possible. The Sage Author Gateway has numerous resources to help you promote your work. Visit the Promote Your Article page on the Gateway for tips and advice.
9. Appealing the publication decision
Editors have very broad discretion in determining whether an article is an appropriate fit for their journal. Many manuscripts are declined with a very general statement of the rejection decision. These decisions are not eligible for formal appeal unless the author believes the decision to reject the manuscript was based on an error in the review of the article, in which case the author may appeal the decision by providing the Editor with a detailed written description of the error they believe occurred.
If an author believes the decision regarding their manuscript was affected by a publication ethics breach, the author may contact the publisher with a detailed written description of their concern, and information supporting the concern, at publication_ethics@sagepub.com