Information For Authors

Author Guidelines

Structure of manuscript

The Yemeni Journal for Medical Sciences (YJMS) welcomes high-quality submissions in all areas of medical and health sciences. Authors are requested to carefully follow the guidelines below to ensure a smooth and efficient review and publication process.

Structure of manuscript

  1. Title

A title should summarize the main idea of the manuscript. It should identify the variables under investigation and the relationship between them. It should be concise and fully explanatory for readers when standing alone. It is recommended to be no more than 12 words, and with no abbreviations. It should be typed in uppercase and lowercase letters, centered in the upper half of the page.

  1. Author's name and institutional affiliation

Every manuscript should include the name of the author and the institutional affiliation of the author when the research was conducted.

Author's name:

The preferred form of an author's name is first name, middle initial(s), and last name, with no titles (e.g., Dr., Professor) or degrees (e.g., PhD, PsyD, EdD). If the manuscript is done by more than one author, the names of the authors should be in the order of their contributions, centered between the side margins.

Institutional affiliation

The affiliation (i.e. institution) should be centered under the author’s name on the next line. If an author has no institutional affiliation, list the city and state of residence below the author's name. The emails for all authors should be provided.

Examples:

Zaki Ahmed Farhan

Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, University of Sana’a, Sana’a, Yemen.

3.     Manuscript Length

  • Original Articles: Up to 5,000 words (excluding abstract, references, tables, and figures).
  • Review Articles: Up to 7,000 words.
  • Case Reports: Up to 2,500 words.
  • Short Communications / Letters to the Editor: Up to 1,500 words.

 4.     Formatting

  • Manuscripts must be submitted in MS Word
  • Font: Times New Roman, 12-point, double-spaced, with 5 cm margins.
  • Number pages consecutively, including references, tables, and figures.

5.     Abstract

  • All manuscripts must include a structured abstract divided into the following sections: Background, Objectives, Methods, Results, and Conclusion.
  • The abstract must not exceed 250 words.
  • Abbreviations should be defined at first mention and avoided in the abstract whenever possible.
  • Example:
    Background: Hypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease in Yemen...

6.     Keywords

  • Provide 3–6 keywords immediately after the abstract.
  • Keywords should follow MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) terminology whenever applicable.
  1. INTRODUCTION

The body of a manuscript starts with an introduction that frames the problem under study and explores its importance (why it deserves new research). The statement about importance might involve the need to resolve any inconsistency in results of past work and/or extend the reach of a theoretical formulation and/ or investigate a practical problem that people suffer. The introduction ends in concluding the statement of the problem with a brief but formal statement of the purpose of the research that summarizes the material preceding it.

The author should include a discussion of the relevant literature in the introduction. A scholarly description of the earlier work will provide a summary of the most recent directly related work and recognize the priority of the work of others. The description of relevant literature will present what other aspects of this study have been investigated in the previous studies and how the current study differs from the earlier ones. For summarizing earlier works, focus should be on the topic (research syntheses of the topic), methodological issues, relevant findings, and main conclusions.

The discussion of related literature should demonstrate the logical continuity between previous and present work (demonstration of gaps); and the development of the problem should have enough breadth and clarity that make it easy to understand by a wide range of professionals.

After developing the theoretical background and the problem of the study, the author has to state the objectives and hypotheses or specific questions. The introduction should be 10 to 15% of the manuscript. It starts on a separate page (i.e. p. 3).

  1. METHODS

This section describes in detail how the study was conducted, including the conceptual and operational definitions of the variables used. A thorough description of the methods allows the reader to assess their appropriateness and the results' reliability and validity. It may include participant characteristics, sampling procedures, sample size, measurements, and research design.

  1. RESULTS

The results section summarizes the collected data and the analysis done on those data. It should provide sufficient detail about the data to justify the study conclusions. The results should also include details that may not match the study expectation or even small effect sizes (or statistically non-significant findings), particularly when theory predicts large (or statistically significant) ones. Uncomfortable results should not be omitted. The data can be presented in tables or figures (data presented in tables should not be represented in figures). Tables should be numbered in order of mention in the text. Tables can be single-spaced and should not contain any lines. Asterisks may be used to indicate significant findings. Symbols, acronyms or abbreviations should be used sparingly. Explanatory footnotes should be used whenever possible rather than overlong titles. Images should be submitted as high-resolution files (300 dpi or higher) in TIFF format (LZW compression) or JPEGs.

  1. DISCUSSION

After presenting the results, their implications should be evaluated and interpreted, especially with respect to the original hypotheses. The author needs to examine, interpret, and draw inferences and conclusions from the results emphasize any theoretical or practical consequences of the results (Results and discussion can be combined in one section). Similarities and differences between the results and the work of others should be used to contextualize, confirm, and clarify the conclusions. Each new statement should contribute to the interpretation and to the reader's understanding of the problem.

The interpretation of the results should discuss the limitations or weaknesses of the study, and address alternative explanations of the results. It also discusses the generalizability of the findings. This critical analysis should take into account differences between the target population and the accessed sample.

  1. CONCLUSION

This concluding section presents a brief, reasoned and justifiable commentary on the importance of the findings. It is tightly reasoned, self-contained, and not overstated. In this section, the importance of the problem (as stated in the introduction) should be discussed; what larger issues might depend on the findings; and what propositions are confirmed or disconfirmed.

 12. REFERENCES

  • The journal follows the Vancouver style (ICMJE recommendations).
  • Authors must ensure all references are accurate, up-to-date, and relevant.
  • At least 70% of references should be from the last 10 years.
  • Example reference:
    Smith J, Ahmed R. Hypertension in low-income countries: prevalence and management. Yemeni Journal for Medical Sciences. 2023;38(107):35–61.

13. Tables & Figures

  • Tables and figures must be clear, self-explanatory, and numbered consecutively in the order they appear in the text.
  • Each table/figure must have a title and descriptive legend/caption.
  • Figures must be submitted in high resolution (300 dpi or higher) in JPEG/TIFF format.

14. Acknowledgements

The primary purpose is to formally thank individuals, groups, and institutions who contributed to the work but do not meet the formal criteria for authorship. It is a way to show professional courtesy, ensure transparency, and give credit where it is due.

Templates and Examples

Example:

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to [Technician Name] for technical support with electron microscopy and to [Department Name] for their lab facilities.

  1. Conflict of interest

All potential conflicts of interest (competing interests) that could have a direct or indirect influence on the work must be disclosed by the authors.

16. Data Preservation & Availability Statement

  • Authors are required to include a Data Availability Statement in their manuscript, specifying whether the data are:
    • Publicly available in a recognized repository (provide the permanent link/DOI), or
    • Available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.
  • Example statement:
    “The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.”

17. Generative AI Policy

  • Reliance on Generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, etc.…) must not exceed 25% of the manuscript content excluding results.
  • Authors must disclose the use of AI in the Methods or Acknowledgments
  • Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and ethical compliance of their manuscript.
  • Example disclosure:
    “Portions of the text were generated with the assistance of [AI tool]. The authors reviewed, edited, and take full responsibility for the final content.”
  1. Funding Sources
  • To ensure transparency by declaring all financial support for the research, thereby allowing readers to assess potential conflicts of interest.
  • All Funding Sources: List every organisation that provided financial support for the research and/or the preparation of the article. This includes:
    • Government agencies (e.g., NIH, NSF, ERC, national research councils)
    • Non-profit organizations (e.g., Wellcome Trust, charities, foundations)
    • Commercial or for-profit entities (e.g., pharmaceutical companies, tech firms)
    • Internal institutional grants
  • Grant Numbers: Always include the specific grant or award number(s) provided by the funding agency.
  • Full Names: Use the complete official name of the funding body, not just its acronym.
  • Role of the Funder (if required by journal): Some journals require a statement on the funder's involvement, e.g., "The funder had no role in the study design, data collection, analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript." If they did have a role, it must be stated honestly.
  • This information is typically included in a dedicated "Funding" or "Acknowledgement of Funding" section, which is typically located before the reference list or within the acknowledgements.
  • Examples: For a single funder: "This work was supported by the National Science Foundation [grant number CBET-2033452]."
  • Examples for Multiple Funders: "This research was funded by the European Research Council [Horizon 2020 grant number 789123]; the National Institutes of Health [R01 AI123456]; and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation."
  • No Funding: "The authors did not receive support from any organization for the submitted work." / "No funding was received for this research."
  1. Authorship Contribution
  • The purpose is to provide clarity and accountability by specifying the contribution of each author, ensuring that all listed authors deserve credit and have agreed to be listed.

        Core Principles (Based on ICMJE Criteria):

  • An author must meet all of the following four criteria:
  1. Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND
  2. Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND
  3. Final approval of the version to be published; AND
  4. Agreeing to take responsibility for all aspects of the work, including ensuring that any questions regarding the accuracy or integrity of any part are properly investigated and resolved.

      Use the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) model

  • It provides a standardized list of 14 roles. Describe each author's contribution using these terms.

         Common CRediT Terms:

  • Conceptualization: Ideas; formulation of research goals.
  • Methodology: Development of models and research methodology.
  • Formal Analysis: Application of statistical/formal techniques to analyze data.
  • Investigation: Conducting the experiment/data collection.
  • Resources: Provision of materials/reagents/patients/computing resources.
  • Data Curation: Management activities to annotate/clean data.
  • Writing – Original Draft: Preparation of the first draft.
  • Writing – Review & Editing: Critical revision of the manuscript.
  • Visualization: Preparation of figures and visualizations.
  • Supervision: Oversight and leadership responsibility.
  • Project Administration: Management and coordination of the research activity.
  • Funding Acquisition: Acquisition of financial support.
  • In a section titled "Author Contributions" or "CRediT Statement," usually placed before the "Acknowledgements" or "Funding" section.
  • Example: 
  • A.B. Ahmed: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing - Original Draft.
  • C.D. Abbas: Formal analysis, Investigation, Data Curation, Visualization.
  • E.F. Brown: Resources, Writing - Review & Editing, Supervision, Funding acquisition.
  1. Plagiarism Misconduct
  • The purpose is to uphold academic integrity by clearly defining and prohibiting plagiarism, which is the theft of intellectual property. Plagiarism is the act of presenting the words, ideas, or creative work of another as one's own without appropriate attribution or permission. It is a serious form of academic misconduct.

         What Constitutes Plagiarism:

  • Verbatim (Word-for-Word) Copying: Reusing text from another source without quotation marks and a citation.
  • Substantial Copying: Reusing a significant portion of another's work (even with citations) without permission, potentially violating copyright.
  • Paraphrasing Plagiarism: Changing a few words of a source's text while retaining the original structure and meaning without citation.
  • Idea Plagiarism: Using another person's idea, concept, or hypothesis without giving credit.
  • Self-Plagiarism (Text Recycling): Reusing significant portions of one's own previously published work without disclosure and citation. This misleads the reader into believing the content is new.
  • Mosaic Plagiarism (Patchwriting): Combining phrases from multiple sources without citation, creating a "patchwork" of others' work.

         Consequences of Plagiarism:

  • Immediate rejection of the manuscript.
  • Retraction of a published article.
  • Damage to professional reputation and credibility.
  • Notification of the authors' institution, which may lead to further disciplinary action.

21. Acceptance / Rejection Rate

  • The journal will publish annually the acceptance and rejection rates of submitted manuscripts as part of the Editorial Report, ensuring transparency in editorial decisions.

22. Reference Timeframe

  • All editorial statistics (acceptance rates, review timelines, decision times) will be reported based on the calendar year (January–December).

23. Cancellation of Previous Requirement

  • Authors are no longer required to submit separate colored, black-and-white, or Word versions of their manuscripts.
  • Only the final approved version uploaded through the online system will be considered for review and publication.