Official Journal of The American Association of Thoracic Surgeons
and the Western Thoracic Surgical Association
Official Journal of The American Association
of Thoracic Surgeons
and the Western Thoracic Surgical Association
General
Information
Editorial
Policies
Review
Manuscripts
Brief Communications
Letters to
the Editor
Reprints
Checklist
Copyright Form
Editorial Office—Room C4634
The Journal of Thoracic
and
Cardiovascular Surgery
The Milton S. Hershey Medical
Center
The
Pennsylvania State University
P.O. Box 850, 500 University
Drive
Hershey,
PA 17033
717-531-6297 (telephone)
717-531-4729 (fax)
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The Journal publishes peer-reviewed original articles on topics pertaining to thoracic and cardiovascular surgery. It is the official journal of The American Association for Thoracic Surgery and The Western Thoracic Surgical Association. All communications relating to the editorial management of the Journal should be sent to John A. Waldhausen, MD, at the address given above.
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Statements and opinions expressed in the articles and communications herein are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the Editor, the publisher, or the Associations, and the Editor, the publisher, and the Associations disclaim any responsibility or liability for such material. The Editor, the publisher, and the Associations do not guarantee, warrant, or endorse any product or service advertised in this publication, nor do they guarantee any claim made by the manufacturer of such product or service.
Manuscripts
Copyright Statement
Conflict of
Interest
Informed Consent
Humane
Animal Care
Consultant
Statistician
Title Page
Abstract
Ultramini-Abstract
Units of
Measurement
Abbreviations
References
Citation Examples
Illustrations
Tables
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Review: All articles are reviewed by three or more referees. Acceptance is based upon significance, originality, and validity of the material presented. If the article is accepted for publication, editorial revisions may be made to aid clarity and understanding without altering the meaning.
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Manuscripts: An original with one set of original figures and three copies of all material, including illustrations, should be submitted. Place author's name and page number in the upper right corner of each page. Use double spacing throughout. Manuscripts generally should not exceed twelve double-spaced, typewritten pages. Include a cover ing letter stating that the material has not been previously published or submitted elsewhere for publication. Identify in the letter the name, address, business and home telephone numbers, and fax number of the author to whom correspondence should be sent. GUIDELINES FOR PREPARATION OF A MANUSCRIPT ARE OUTLINED IN "NOTES FROM THE EDITORS" (J THORAC CARDIOVASC SURG 1996;112:209-20) AND SHOULD, IN GENERAL, BE FOLLOWED. Illustrations that are not accepted for publication may be returned to the authors. Illustrations for papers that have been accepted for publication will not be returned unless specifically requested by the author. Once a manuscript is accepted, the final version of the manuscript may be submitted on diskette along with two copies of the printout. The author accepts responsibility for the submitted diskette exactly matching the printout of the final version of the manuscript. Guidelines for submission of accepted manuscript on diskette will be sent to the author by the editorial office. After acceptance of the manuscript for publication, no author can be removed from the author list without the written permission of that author.
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Copyright statement: According to the Copyright Act of 1976, all manuscripts must be accompanied by the copyright statement form that appears at the end of the Information for Authors section. This statement must be signed by all authors. Authors will be consulted, when possible, regarding republication of their material.
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Conflict of interest: When the proposed publication concerns a device, such as an artificial valve or an instrument for measurement, as well as drugs, the author must enclose a statement (1) indicating that he or she has no financial or other interest in the manufacturer or distributor of the device or (2) explaining the nature of any relation between himself or herself and the manufacturer or distributor of the device.
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Informed consent: Reports describing data obtained from research conducted in human subjects must contain a statement in the Methods section indicating approval by the institutional review board and affirmation that informed consent was obtained from each patient.
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Humane animal care: All papers reporting experiments using animals must include a statement in the Methods section giving assurance that all animals have received humane care in compliance with the "Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals" prepared by the Institute of Laboratory Animal Resources and published by the National Institutes of Health (NIH Publication No. 86-23, revised 1985). Papers submitted from outside the United States must be in compliance with the guidelines established by their country's government or those of the National Institutes of Health.
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Consultant statistician: All papers prepared in consultation with a statistician who is not a coauthor should contain a footnote or an acknowledgment indicating the name and degree(s) of the consultant statistician.
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Title page: Make the title concise. List affiliation and academic degrees of author(s). Restrict number of authors to those making material contributions. All sources of funding for the work should be acknowledged. Include where the work was done with the name, address, business and home telephone numbers, and fax number of individual to whom correspondence and reprint requests are to be addressed.
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Abstract: On the first page of the manuscript, a structured abstract, limited to 250 words, should be provided. The structured abstract is to contain the following major headings; Objective(s); Methods; Results; and Conclusions. Objective is defined as the hypothesis or the purpose of the study. Methods is defined as the study design. Results includes the outcome of the study and statistical significance, if appropriate. Conclusions states the significance of the results. Please supply a word count and please do not use acronyms.
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Ultramini-abstract: One to three sentences of no more than 50 words in all should be included as an ultramini-abstract, containing the essence of the manuscript, for inclusion immediately beneath the title of the paper in the table of contents.
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Units of measurement. Measurements of length, height, weight, and volume should be reported in metric units (meter, kilogram, or liter) or their decimal multiples. Temperatures should be given in degrees Celsius. Blood pressures should be given in millimeters of mercury. All hematological and clinical chemistry measurements should be reported in the metric system in terms of the International System of Units (SI). Alternative or non-SI units should also be added by the authors before publication. Please see "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals." JAMA 1993;269:2282-6.
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Abbreviations. Except for units of measurements, abbreviations are discouraged. The first time an abbreviation appears it should be preceded by the words for which it stands. No abbreviations are to be used in the title or abstract. Consult the following sources for acceptable standard abbreviations: (1) Scientific Style and Format: The Council of Biology Editors Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers (6th ed., New York: Cambridge University Press, 1994) and (2) Iverson, Cheryl, et al., eds. American Medical Association Manual of Style, 8th ed. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins, 1989.
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References: References should be numbered serially in the text and listed, on a separate sheet, double-spaced, at the end of the paper in that order. Generally, references should not exceed 30 in number. Reference format should conform to that set forth in "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals" (JAMA 1993;269:2282-6), also knows as the "Vancouver" style for biomedical journals. Journal abbreviations should conform to the style used in the Cumulated Index Medicus. Each reference should include:
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For journals—authors' names and initials, title of arti cle, journal name, date, volume number, and inclusive pages (list all authors when six or less; when seven or more, list only three and add et al.):
Sarris GE, Moore KA, Schroeder JS, et al. Cardiac transplantation: the Stanford experience in the cylcosporine era. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 1994; 108:241-52.
Morrow WR, Smith VC, Ehler WJ, VanDellen AF, Mullins CE. Balloon angioplasty with stent implantation in experimental coarctation of the aorta. Circulation 1994;89:2677-83.
For books—authors' names, chapter title, editor's name, book title, edition, city, publisher, date, and pages:
Kouchoukos NT, Wareing TH. Management of complications of aortic surger y. In: Waldhausen JA, Orringer MB, eds. Complications in cardiothoracic surgery. 1st ed. St. Louis: Mosby–Year Book, 1991:224-36.
Unpublished data and personal communications should not be listed as references. Authors are responsible for accuracy of their references.
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Illustrations: Illustrations are scanned electronically. For best reproduction, screening, shading, and lettering on a dark background should be avoided. Detailed instructions are available from the editorial office. Digitized electronic files for illustrations may be submitted along with four copies of the printout on high-quality laser printer paper. For halftone drawings, histologic sections, electron microscopic data, echocardiograms, and color photographs, four sets of the glossy prints must be provided. Please put the sets of illustrations in separate envelopes.
Illustrations should be numbered in the order of their mention in the text, and marked lightly on the back with the author's name and an arrow to indicate top edge. A reasonable number of halftone illustrations will be reproduced free of cost to the author, but special arrangement must be made with the Editor for color plates, elaborate tables, or extra illustrations. All lettering must be done professionally and should be in proportion to the drawing, graph, or photograph. Do not send original art work, x-ray films, or ECG strips. Glossy print photographs, 3 by 4 inches (minimum) to 5 by 7 inches (maximum), with good black-and-white contrast or color balance are preferred. Consistency in size within the article is strongly preferred. Any special instructions regarding sizing should be clearly noted. Suitable legends should be typewritten, double-spaced, and listed on a separate sheet of paper and included at the end of the manuscript.
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Tables: Tables should be self-explanatory and should supplement, not duplicate, the text. Type on pages separate from the text. Provide a brief title for each. Abbreviations used in table should be defined at the bottom of the table.
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Brief Communications: Authors are urged to submit brief clinical communications containing substantive information concerning clinical studies or a pertinent observation. These communications will be reviewed by the Editor as well as the appropriate Associate Editor. Such communication should be titled, double-spaced, submitted in triplicate, and limited to three (3) typewritten, double-spaced pages with no more than two tables or figures and a brief bibliography (no more than five references). Brief clinical communications are retained and indexed in the Cumulated Index Medicus. The submitted brief communication must be accompanied by a signed copyright statement.
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Letters to the Editor: Readers are encouraged to submit commentary on an article that has been published in the Journal, as well as other issues. Letters may be published together with a reply from the original author. If the original author does not respond, a notation indicating "Response declined" will be published. A covering letter should be submitted explaining any circumstances relevant to the "letter to the Editor." The letter itself should be titled, double-spaced, and submitted in triplicate. Substantive letters to the Editor are retained and indexed in the Cumulated Index Medicus. The submitted letter to the Editor must be accompanied by a signed copyright statement.
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Reprints: Single reprints may be obtained from the author.
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The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Copyright Statement Must be signed by ALL authors | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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