Author Guidelines

Article Types and Limits

*Word count applies to body text only; does not include titles, figures, tables, or references.

General Font and Guidelines:

1. Font
   • All font should be Times New Roman size 12, double-spaced.
   • HEADINGS should be bold and uppercase.
   • Subheadings should be bold.
   • Manuscript Titles should be bold, underlined, and included on every submission as the first line of the blinded manuscript and on the cover page.
2. General Format
   • Margins are 1” on all sides. These settings and the font settings should be the default settings.
   • Number all lines of the manuscript using the Line Number feature in the document. Do NOT number the lines manually.
   • All pages should be numbered.
3. The main manuscript file text should not contain any author names or identifiers to ensure an unbiased blind review.
4. All figures and tables should include relevant captions and titles. They should be numbered separately using Arabic numerals.
5. Provide a legend for all tables and figures at the end of the submission text (after references). Figures and tables should also be submitted as separate file types.
6. References are listed in NLM format at the bottom of the submission and incorporated sequentially throughout the submission using superscripts as they appear.
7. Use abbreviations sparingly and only if well-known. Spell out the full term at first mention; subsequent mentions may use the abbreviation.
8. Use generic names of drugs.
9. List any conflicts of interest or any external funding when submitting.
10. The methods section should mention if the study was approved by the IRB or if IRB approval was unnecessary.

*Any submission that does not abide by these guidelines will immediately be sent back to the author without review.

Authorship:

1. Ensure authors are listed on the cover page attached to each submission and entered into the website when submitting. The order should be correct on both the website and cover page. Authorship order will not be changed or added after a manuscript is submitted to PSJM (effective May 15, 2020).
2. Only authors who contributed to writing the manuscript or developing figures can be included as authors. Read more.
3. Maximum Number of Authors:
   • Original Article – Maximum of 10 Authors
   • Abstract/Brief Report – Maximum of 5 Authors
   • Case Report – Maximum of 5 Authors
4. Individuals who contributed to data collection can be acknowledged on the separate title page under a separate acknowledgment section.

Separate Title Page:

1. All submissions (case reports, brief reports, and original articles) must include a separate title page.
2. This should include:
   1. Title
   2. All authors with their affiliated organizations and degrees
   3. Corresponding author name and contact (phone and email)
   4. Any disclosures or conflicts of interest. If none, then please write: "No authors have any disclosures or conflicts of interest at this time."

Original Article:

*Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses should have abstracts and texts structured as an Original Article.

1. Length
   • Word Count: 4000 words (max)
   • Figures: 7 (max)
   • Tables: 4 (max)
   • References: 60 (max)
2. Abstract:
   • Purpose: One or two sentences stating the purpose without background information or hypothesis.
   • Methods: Provide sufficient detail on the methods of the study, including selection criteria.
   • Results: Provide results with data, P values, and standard deviation of mean or 95% confidence intervals. Present the most important findings first. Provide exact P values (not P <) and numbers to support your findings.
   • Conclusions: State only what your study found; do not include extraneous information not backed up by the results.
   • Original Articles: Abstracts should be a maximum of 300 words and structured to include the above sections.
3. Introduction
   • Succinctly state the problem or controversy that led to the study, including a concise review of only the most relevant literature. Conclude by stating the purpose of the study and your hypothesis. The purpose in the Introduction should match that of the Abstract.
4. Methods
   • Describe the study design (prospective or retrospective), inclusion and exclusion criteria, and duration. If prospective, report the number of enrolled subjects in Methods. If retrospective, the study population (numbers, demographics, length of follow-up) should be in Results.
   • Include IRB and animal studies information. IRB approval is required for all human studies except retrospective and cadaver studies.
   • Describe the statistics used to analyze the data in detail. Use of the word significant requires reporting an exact P value. Confidence intervals of 95% are required whenever the results of survivorship analysis are given in the text, tables, or figures. Use of the word correlation requires reporting the correlation coefficient.
5. Results
   • Describe in detail the data obtained during the study, following the order of the Methods, including the final number of subjects, demographics, and length of follow-up (mean and range). All data in the text must be consistent with the rest of the manuscript, including data in tables, figures, and legends. Present comparison data in tables and present as mean ± standard error of the mean with confidence intervals.
6. Discussion
   • Be concise. Start with the most important findings of your study. State whether your hypothesis is affirmed or refuted. Compare and contrast your study with others in the most relevant world literature, particularly recent literature. A complete literature review is unnecessary.
   • At the end of the Discussion, under the subheading "Limitations," review the limitations of your study.
7. Conclusions
   • Briefly state your new (or verified) view of the problem you outlined in the Introduction. Take special care to draw your conclusions only from your results and verify that your conclusions are firmly supported by your data. Most importantly, do not make concluding statements that are not supported by your data, lie beyond the scope of your study, or are unnecessary. The conclusions in the text must match those in the abstract.
8. Tables and Figures
   • Must be included in relevant areas of text with appropriate title and figure legend.
   • These should be in the blinded manuscript and NOT as a separate attachment.
   • They should be titled with numbers in sequential order as they appear in text.
9. References
   • They should be listed in numerical order in NLM format and incorporated in the text throughout the manuscript.

Case Report:

1. Length
   • Word Count: 500 words (max)
   • Figures and Tables: 2 total (max)
   • References: 10 (max)
2. Learning Objectives
   • List three learning objectives that will be conveyed from the case presentation and the subsequent discussion. These objectives will outline the knowledge that the reader can expect to acquire from reading the report.
3. Case Description
   • Briefly describe the case with all relevant information including brief history, physical exam and diagnostic data in a well-organized manner. The order of the presentation should be similar to that of a clinical presentation. Include original presentation, pertinent findings, diagnosis, and treatment.
4. Discussion/Conclusion
   • Use recent peer-reviewed literature and your case to put forth a learning opportunity that can be applied to a wider population. The educational takeaway must be clearly defined in this section. In addition, summarize the key learning objectives in a few short sentences.
5. Tables and Figures
   • Must be included in relevant areas of text with appropriate title and figure legend.
   • These should be in the blinded manuscript and NOT as a separate attachment.
   • They should be titled with numbers in sequential order as they appear in text.
6. References
   • They should be listed in numerical order in NLM format and incorporated in the text throughout the manuscript in superscript format.

All authors must submit signed advisor acceptance form in order to be considered for publication! Only the corresponding author needs to upload the form.