World Journal of Emergency Medicine (WJEM, ISSN 1920-8642, CN 33-1408/R) is the official publication of the Emergency Medicine Society of Chinese Medical Association. WJEM, a peer-reviewed bimonthly journal based at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, China, publishes articles of interest to both clinicians and researchers involving emergency and critical care medicine around world. It focuses on content relevant to clinical practice and research, laboratory studies, medical education about emergency and critical care medicine.
Scope
The journal will cover technical, clinical and bio-engineering studies related to multidisciplinary specialties of emergency and critical care medicine, such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, acute injury, out-of-hospital emergency medical service, intensive care, injury and disease prevention, disaster management, healthy policy and ethics, toxicology, and sudden illness, including cardiology, internal medicine, anesthesiology, orthopedics, and trauma care, and more. The journal also features basic science, special reports, case reports, board review questions, and more. Editorials and Letter to the Editor explore controversial issues and encourage further discussion by physicians dealing with emergency medicine.
Submission Requirements
Article TypesWJEM will review manuscripts with the understanding that they are being submitted only to WJEM and have not been published, simultaneously submitted, or already accepted for publication elsewhere. This does not preclude consideration of a manuscript that has been rejected by another journal or of a complete report that follows publication of preliminary findings elsewhere, usually in the form of an abstract. Copies of any possibly duplicative published material should be submitted with the manuscript that is being sent for consideration. WJEM will not consider manuscripts that have appeared, in part or in total, in other publications. It is the corresponding author’s responsibility to complete, sign and submit on behalf of all authors the declaration form stating that the submitted manuscript complies with the above requirements. Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the content. This participation must include: (1) conception, design, or analysis and interpretation of data, or both; (2) drafting the article or revising it for critically important intellectual content; (3) final approval of the version to be published.
WJEM publishes the following categories of articles involving different areas of emergency medicine:
Original Article: Previously unpublished manuscripts report new clinical and laboratory investigations and research. Article length should be no more than 4,000 words. But there is an exception for invited articles. These articles present primary data arising from original research. Randomized clinical trials should conform to the criteria specified in the CONSORT statement (see table) (www.consort-statement.org). All clinical trial reports submitted to WJEM must be registered with an internationally accepted clinical trials registry and the registration number should be included in the manuscript. Researchers initiating studies should register as soon as the approval of the ethics board has been obtained. Authors of retrospective medical record reviews should, where appropriate, incorporate the design elements. Authors reporting the performance of a diagnostic test should follow the STARD initiative (see table 1).
Original articles should be within the recommended word count (including text, references, and table and figure legends). The Introduction section should describe study background, objectives and hypotheses. The Methods section should include a description of the overall study design, the study setting, time period, patients studied (with eligibility criteria), a description of the intervention, the primary and secondary outcome measures, and the statistical analysis employed. The Results section should include primary and secondary results, with appropriate tables and figures. The Discussion section should highlight the important study findings and discuss these in the context of the published literature. In addition, this section should identify limitations of the research and future directions. Conclusions should be stated in one paragraph and should be supported by the data. A structured abstract must also be included as mentioned above.
Review Article: Definitive, in-depth, state-of-the-art reviews of clinical and research subjects. Before submitting any unsolicited reviews, please forward an outline to the Editor for consideration. Although normally by invitation, authors may submit a focused discussion on major current problems of emergency physicians or on controversial matters with significant implications for emergency medicine. Article length should be no more than 4,000 words (including text, references, and table and figure legends).
Consensus Statement: Submissions will be reports commissioned by the editors from a group of experts to inform our readership on topics where the evidence base is incomplete or controversial. These reports are intended to reflect a committee’s consensus after deliberations and include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on available scientific evidence. Information in these articles is to include expert opinion on topics in lack of robust data. A concise table or concise graphic summarizing the recommendations and other key points is desirable. Article length should be no more than 2500 words (including text, references, and table and figure legends).
Research Letter: Short papers, series of cases, and preliminary reports of work in progress; studies with small numbers pointing to the need for further investigation. The text is limited to 1,500 words (including text, references, and table and figure legends), without abstract and key words, 10 or fewer references, maximum of 2 tables or figures. Declaration of patient consent must be stated if the article contains patient information.
Editorial: The purpose of the editorials is to provide readers with a balanced overview of relevant and up-to-date topics concerning emergency medicine. Editorials can be up to 2000 words length with no more than 25 references.
Viewpoint: Succinct opinion pieces are welcome and believed to have a meaningful impact for the readership. It can be observation of current practices or suggestion on relative advantage of a specific methodology or clinical practice compared to its alternatives. These should be ≤2,500 words (including text, references, and table and figure legends).
Commentary: Most comments are commissioned, but spontaneous comments are welcome on a paper or other report or event within the past month or so, or in the near future. The text is limited to no more than 800 words, without abstract and key words, 5 or fewer references.
Case Letter: Reports of clinical cases are accepted in a limited number. They should be less than 2 printed pages in length including 10 or fewer references and no more than 3 figures. Case reports are limited to <1,500 words. Case reports should illustrate an important error or practice point for emergency physicians, identify previously undescribed findings or phenomena, or describe a therapy that could lead to future research or a change in practice.
Case reports should conform to the general guidelines set by the Uniform Requirements. They should include a brief introduction (1–2 paragraphs describing why the topic is important); a case report with a succinct summary of relevant historical, physical, laboratory and imaging findings, emergency department diagnosis, management, and disposition, and relevant follow-up information; a discussion summarizing what the case illustrates and what the teaching points are; and a 1-paragraph conclusion.
Clinical Imaging and Technique: Articles report interesting, high quality clinical images with accompanying text that briefly reviews the important features of the related case, which will stimulate diagnostic discussion. Diagnosis and explanation should be distinct from the case presentation. Brief reports of clinical techniques or pearls are also welcome. Article length should be 1,000–1,500 words.
Letter to the Editor: This section is devoted to letters to the editor including short communications on significant preliminary clinical data or research development, as well as discussions of topics covered in previously published articles. Letters to the editor are particularly welcome as they provide a means of open communication among readers. Text should be limited to 500 words, 5 references and 1 figure.
WJEM publishes articles in English with high quality content in an easy-to-read format; therefore, brevity and active voice are encouraged. Accepted articles will be edited for clarity, brevity and journal style.
Authors should follow the general guidelines set by the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals (www.ICMJE.org). Articles not prepared in accordance with these guidelines including those about style or format will be rejected. For grammar, style, and punctuation, WJEM uses Manual of Style prepared by the American Medical Association (www.amamanualofstyle.com).
Formatting
Manuscripts should be double-spaced from title page to the list of references. Authors are asked to use a consistent 12-point font of the text of manuscript, with right margins unjustified. The pages of the manuscript should be numbered consecutively, beginning with the title page, and a running title is required. The manuscript must include the following parts:
Title Page
Title page should include the title of the article, authors' name(s) and the affiliations of the authors. The name, address, telephone number, fax number, and e-mail address for the corresponding author should be provided in addition to a word count.
Cover Letter
A short paragraph telling the editors why the authors think their paper merits publication may be included in the cover letter. Potential reviewers may be suggested in the cover letter, as well as reviewers to avoid. However, final reviewer assignment is determined by the editors.
The corresponding author should be specified in the cover letter. All editorial communications and submission queries will be sent to this author. Cover letters must include the following 4 ICJME Statements:
1) The paper is not under consideration elsewhere;
2) None of the paper’s contents have been published;
3) All authors have read and approved the manuscript;
4) The full disclosure of any potential conflict of interest or that no such relationship exists. Exceptions must be explained. If there is no conflict of interest, this should also be stated in the cover letter.
Abstracts and Keywords
Structured abstracts should be prepared in sections of Background, Methods, Results, Conclusions with up to 250 words for original research articles, and Background, Data resources, Results, Conclusions for systematic review articles and meta-analyses. Abstracts are only required for original articles and review articles. Below the abstract, authors should provide a list of three to six keywords from the Medical Subject Headings of the Index Medicus.
Ethical Considerations
The chief editor of the journal is responsible for establishing the highest possible standards of the journal, as well as for maintaining its integrity. The final responsibility rests with the authors, not with the journal, its editor. The chief editor and the editorial board are primarily responsible for ensuring a fair review process and will give unbiased consideration to all submitted manuscripts. The statements and opinions contained in the articles published in WJEM are solely those of the individual authors and contributors.
For studies involving human subjects, the Methods section should specify the nature of the patient consent that was obtained at the time of enrolment. Authors must clarify that an appropriate ethics committee or investigational review board approved the research. In short, the studies must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki (www.wma.net/e/policy/b3.htm). Studies using animals must conform to the laws of the country where the research was performed.
Conflict of Interests
All manuscripts must state whether any authors have proprietary interest or not. At the time of submission of a manuscript, the authors should present a signed financial disclosure form, indicating any financial interests or potential conflicts of interest relating to the manuscript.
Abbreviations and SI Units
WJEM uses only standard abbreviations. The full term for which an abbreviation stands for should be reported before its first use in the main text. SI units should be adopted in the description of research results in all articles submitted to the journal and should also be indicated for symbols.
Tables
Each table should be typed on a separate sheet, double spaced. As a general role, tables should not unnecessarily offer duplicate information offered in the text. Don’t format tables by dividing the text in columns or by using tabs. Don’t submit tables as Figures. Tables should be numbered consecutively in Arabic numerals by order of citation in the main text. Each table must include title (e.g. Table 1), appropriate column headings and explanatory legends, including definitions of any abbreviation used. These references should not be repeated in the reference section unless they are also cited in the main text. Identify statistical measures of variations, such as SD and SEM.
Figures
Figures must be submitted as individual files. They should be cited consecutively in the text and numbered in the order in which they are discussed. If figures are not submitted in a high enough resolution for publishing, they will be returned to the authors for technical revision. When a patient is identifiable in a photograph, the author or authors must supply the journal with evidence of the patient’s permission to publish the photograph. If a figure has been published elsewhere, authors should acknowledge the original source and submit to the editor written permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the material. Permission is required, regardless of authorship or publisher, except for documents in the public domain.
Legends
Legends to figures and illustrations should be typed double-spaced, starting on a separate page with Arabic numerals corresponding to the Figures. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the figure, identify and explain each one of them clearly in the legends.
References
The references cited in the text should include only those that are important and have been reviewed by authors. The authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the references and for correct citation in the text. When listing references the names of journals should be abbreviated according to the style of PubMed (List all authors and/or editors up to 6; if more than 6, list the first 6 and et al). The references should be marked in the text by superscript numbers in the order of their appearance. The list of references at the end of the text should be in this numerical order. If a manuscript not meeting these requirements is submitted, it will be rejected without review, with a note reiterating the need to follow the instructions for format. Once it is corrected, the manuscript will enter the normal review process.
Video
WJEM accepts video material to support and enhance your scientific research. Authors who have video files that they wish to submit with their article are strongly encouraged. This can be done in the same way as a figure or table by referring to the video content and noting in the body text where it should be placed. All submitted files should be properly labeled. In order to ensure that your video material is directly usable, please provide the file in one of our recommended file formats with a preferred maximum size of 400 MB per file. Video files supplied will be published online in the electronic version of your article as supplementary items in our website products.
Supplementary Material
Supplementary material such as applications, images and audios, can be published with your article to enhance it. Submitted supplementary items are published exactly as they are received. Please submit your material together with the article and supply a concise, descriptive caption for each supplementary file.
Manuscript Submission and Editing
Manuscripts should be submitted electronically at wjemerg@vip.163.com. All submissions should be accompanied by a cover letter. Enquries about manuscript submission can be sent to em_nancy@zju.edu.cn.
Contribution Details
Contributors should provide a description of contributions made by each of them towards the manuscript. Description should be divided in following categories, as applicable: concept, design, definition of intellectual content, literature search, clinical studies, experimental studies, data acquisition, data analysis, statistical analysis, manuscript preparation, manuscript editing and manuscript review. Authors' contributions will be printed along with the article. One or more author should take responsibility for the integrity of the work as a whole from inception to published article and should be designated as 'guarantor'.
Editorial Process
All new submissions to WJEM will be screened using CrossCheck.
The journal expects that authors would authorize one of them to correspond with editors for all matters related to the manuscript. All manuscripts received are duly acknowledged. On submission, editors review all submitted manuscripts initially for suitability for formal review. Manuscripts with insufficient originality, serious scientific or technical flaws, or lack of a significant message are rejected before proceeding for formal peer-review. Manuscripts that are unlikely to be of interest to the WJEM readers are also liable to be rejected at this stage itself.
Manuscripts that are found suitable for publication in WJEM are sent to two or more expert reviewers. During submission, the contributor is requested to provide names of two or three qualified reviewers who have had experience in the subject of the submitted manuscript, but this is not mandatory. The reviewers should not be affiliated with the same institutes as the contributor/s. However, the selection of these reviewers is at the sole discretion of the editor. The journal follows a double-blind review process, wherein the reviewers and authors are unaware of each other’s identity. Every manuscript is also assigned to a member of the editorial team, who based on the comments from the reviewers takes a final decision on the manuscript. The comments and suggestions (acceptance/ rejection/ amendments in manuscript) received from reviewers are conveyed to the corresponding author. If required, the author is requested to provide a point-by-point response to reviewers’ comments and submit a revised version of the manuscript. This process is repeated till reviewers and editors are satisfied with the manuscript.
Manuscripts accepted for publication are copy edited for grammar, punctuation, print style, and format. Page proofs are sent to the corresponding author. The corresponding author is expected to return the corrected proofs within seven days. It may not be possible to incorporate corrections received after that period. The whole process of submission of the manuscript to final decision and sending and receiving proofs is completed online. To achieve faster and greater dissemination of knowledge and information, the journal publishes articles online as ‘Just Accepted’ immediately on acceptance.
Clinical Trial Registry
WJEM favors registration of clinical trials. Registration in the following trial registers is acceptable: http://www.chictr.org.cn/; http://www.ctri.in/; http://www.actr.org.au/; http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/; http://isrctn.org/; http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/index.asp; and http://www.umin.ac.jp/ctr. This is applicable to clinical trials that have begun enrollment of subjects in or after June 2008.
Protection of Patients/ Rights to Privacy
Identifying information should not be published in written descriptions, photographs, sonograms, CT scans, etc., and pedigrees unless the information is essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent or guardian, wherever applicable) gives written informed consent for publication. Authors should remove patients' names from figures unless they have obtained written informed consent from the patients. When informed consent has been obtained, it should be indicated in the article and copy of the consent should be attached with the cover letter.
Copyrights
The entire contents of the World Journal of Emergency Medicine are protected under China and international copyrights. In consideration of World Journal of Emergency Medicine reviewing and editing his/her (their) submission, the author(s) transfer(s), assign(s), or otherwise conveys all copyright ownership (including reproduction rights, distribution rights, compilation rights, translation rights, and digital communication rights) to World Journal of Emergency Medicine and represent(s) that he (they) own(s) all rights in the material submitted. This assignment is to take effect only if the work is published in World Journal of Emergency Medicine.The journal, however, grants to all users a free, irrevocable, worldwide, perpetual right of access to, and a license to copy, use, distribute, perform and display the work publicly and to make and distribute derivative works in any digital medium for any reasonable non-commercial purpose, subject to proper attribution of authorship and ownership of the rights.
Additional Resources
Authors are encouraged to submit articles in many areas of research. The methodological guidelines for reporting different types of studies have been summarized and validated in a number of publications. Authors should check their manuscripts with these reporting guidelines to ensure that all important information for journal editors and readers is present. The most common reporting guidelines for different published study designs are summarized in Table 1. This list is not comprehensive for all possible study designs, but does cover all major study types commonly published.
Table 1. Additional resource
| Study design | Reporting guidelines |
|
Randomized controlled trial (RCT) superiority design |
CONSORT Statement (Begg et al, JAMA 1996, 276(8), 637-9) |
|
RCT with non-inferiority/equivalence design |
Modified CONSORT Statement (Piaggio et al, JAMA 2006: 295, 1152-60) |
|
Systematic review of therapeutic interventions |
QUOROM Statement (Moher et al, Lancet 1999, 354: 1896-900) |
|
Diagnostic test performance study |
STARD Statement (Bossuyt et al, Clin Chem 2003, 49: 1-6) |
|
Systematic review of diagnostic tests |
QUADAS Statement (BMC Med Res Method 2006, 6(9): doi: 0.1186/1471-2288-6-9 |
|
Systematic review of observational study |
MOOSE Statement (Stroup et al, JAMA 2000, 283: 2008-12) |
|
Economic evaluations |
CHEC Criteria (Evers et al, Int J Tech Assess Health Care 2005 21(2): 240-5) |
Prospective authors with questions regarding a submission, or those who wish to discuss a paper in the development stage are encouraged to contact the chief editor or other editorial staff at em_nancy@zju.edu.cn.