Author guidelines

Article types

• Case report: 800 to 1,500 words. Follow the CARE checklist. Structured abstract required.
• Clinical image: 250 to 500 words, 1 to 4 images, one teaching sentence.
• Technical note: 600 to 1,200 words. Equipment, steps, and what fails.
• Procedural review: 1,500 to 2,500 words. Practice-focused, not a systematic review.

We do not take original research, animal studies, or industry-written copy.

What every journal-track file must include

1. Title, article type, and 3 to 6 keywords
2. Structured or unstructured abstract (not required for clinical images)
3. Author names, credentials, affiliations, and one corresponding author with email
4. ORCID if you have one
5. Body text and references (Vancouver / NLM)
6. Images embedded and also as separate files if possible
7. Statements: patient consent, anonymization, COI, funding, ethics / IRB, author contributions, image permission, AI use, and off-label use if any

Consent and images

Written consent to publish is required when a patient could be identified from text or images. Fully de-identified cases require an author attestation that no identifiers remain (faces, tattoos, rare dates, unique device serials, or hospital labels). Do not send the consent form to us. Keep it in the patient record and state that it is on file.

Do not alter diagnostic content. Crop only to remove identifiers. State the equipment and whether the finding is typical or unusual.

Ethics and IRB

Single-patient case reports that do not test a hypothesis are often IRB-exempt. Say so, and name the institution if an IRB reviewed the work. If more than three patients are reported as a series, say whether IRB approval was obtained.

How to send a journal-track manuscript

Until the track opens, email [email protected] with the manuscript and the statements above. Do not use the teaching-case form for journal-track papers. We will not label a paper peer reviewed until it has completed the review process.