Information for Authors
Purpose
The mission of the University of Virginia Journal of Medicine is to provide residents, fellows, and faculty members the opportunity to publish original materials generated from their experiences in patient care or patient care related research. Broadly, each edition will include 5-10 case reports, 3-4 clinical reviews and updates on recent advances, and 1-2 clinical commentaries. The journal will give UVA housestaff the opportunity to work with the faculty in writing medical case reports, thus providing a forum for learning about the process of journal article submission and revision. In addition, the journal offers referring physicians in the state of Virginia, alumni of the medicine training programs, and healthcare providers associated with the University the opportunity to learn from the breadth of clinically based educational experiences generated from patient care at the University of Virginia.
Article Submission
Only original, unpublished materials will be considered for publication. Inclusion of housestaff on all articles is strongly recommended. Submissions should be made electronically to Cathy Keefe-Jankowski (ck8h@virginia.edu). Any images or figures accompanying the article should be emailed as separate .jpg files. When submitting a manuscript, authors should provide full disclosure of any duplicate publication of any content of the paper in a cover letter to the Editor.
Manuscript Format
Authors are encouraged to follow the AMA writing style as outlined in Writing and Publishing in Medicine, 3rd Edition, Edward J. Huth, MD. Accepted manuscripts are edited in accordance with the American Medical Association Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors, 9th edition. All measurements should be expressed in SI units. Abbreviations that are nonstandard should be avoided; other abbreviations must be defined on first use. Generic drug names are preferred. The manuscripts must be free of any identifying patient information in order to respect confidentiality.
References
- All information not considered statements of common knowledge must be supported by citation of published articles in the medical scientific literature.
- Literature sources must be cited according to AMA guidelines.
Examples of Reference Style:
Journal Article:
1. Spock MR, McCoy D. Extraterrestrial transfusion methods. J Interplanetary Med. 2800;13:53-65.
Book:
1. West H. Reanimation in Theory and Practice, Providence, RI: Miskatonic Universtiy Press; 1923.
Guidelines for Article Review Process
Manuscripts will be blindly reviewed by two members of the editorial board. Decisions regarding acceptance for publication will be based on the strength of the paper compared with other papers in the literature, the need for the University of Virginia Journal of Medicine to represent a balanced picture of important advances in internal medicine, and the number of accepted papers in the paper's category and topic area. In addition, reviewers will score submissions based on the following criteria.
i. Originality of case presentation
ii. Clarity of teaching points
iii. Balanced and evidence-based representation of recommendations
iv. Quality of the writing
Copyright 2007 Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia
UVa Journal Article Categories:
Clinical Vignettes: length - 800-1600 words
Clinical Vignettes describe patients with classic presentations of rare diseases or common diseases with unusual or interesting aspects. Authors are encouraged to present a brief review of pertinent literature and discuss salient parts of the patient diagnosis. Clinical Vignettes are coauthored by the resident or fellow and the attending physician who supervised the care of the patient and focus on one or two teaching points related to diagnosis, management, or treatment.
UVa Images in Medicine: length - maximum 250 words
Presentation of a radiographic image or digital photograph of an intriguing patient case accompanied by a brief case report. Authors should focus on the diagnosis and management of underlying pathophysiology related to the presented image and associated medical condition.
Invited Articles
Medical Grand Rounds: suggested length - 1600-3200 words
A review article written by an attending physician who recently presented during Medical Grand Rounds at the University of Virginia. Specifically, this article should provide readers a thorough overview of recent scientific and technologic advances, discussed during the Grand Rounds and developed at the University of Virginia, which have contributed to the overall understanding and management of specific conditions.
Clinical Review Article: length - 1600-3200 words
A comprehensive review article written by an attending physician based on a thorough assessment of the literature with the goal of outlining the current understanding of the pathophysiology and up-to-date practice guidelines for specific clinical topics.
Clinical Commentary: length - 1600-3200 words
The Clinical Commentary offers attending or resident physicians an opportunity to provide a unique clinical perspective on a component of patient care, education, or medical advancements. The scope of this submission is quite broad and may incorporate discussion of controversial issues in the practice of medicine, topics related to or examples of patient care that have affected the author's personal or professional outlook, and/or commentaries about health care policy or public health.
The Academic Hospitalist Corner: length - 1600-3200 words
This section is dedicated to the emerging field of inpatient hospitalist medicine. Article submissions may be case reports, clinical reviews, perspective pieces, and/or commentaries on medical education and training as related to hospitalist medicine.
Chief Resident Clinical Medicine Conference: length - 1600-3200 words
A report that describes a rare or unusual case, with an emphasis on processes of differential diagnosis, workup, and management that are also applicable to commonly encountered medical conditions. The article should include a thorough discussion of several diagnostic dilemmas with the goal of addressing both the management of complex pathophysiology and the process of systematically arriving at difficult diagnoses.