Article Guidelines

JOGECA publishes (1) original articles in clinical practice and basic science, (2) case reports and case series, (3) review articles, (4) editorials, (5) correspondence, (6) short communication, (7) commentaries, opinions and perspectives, and (8) abstracts from relevant conferences in Obstetrics and Gynecology. 

Types of Articles

Original research

Original research articles must contribute further to well established knowledge. They should not exceed 3500 words including main text, figures, tables and references. The general format for original research includes title, highlights, abstract (250-word limit), introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, conclusion. Particular sections may be required and this should be guided by appropriate reporting guidelines for specific study types.

Articles for main study types must be within the outlined scope, described above and should follow their respective recommendations and must be accompanied with relevant checklists.

  • Randomized trials

Randomized trials reporting must adhere to the CONSORT Statement guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed CONSORT checklist. CONSORT extensions are available for reporting randomized trials on harms, noninferiority, cluster, herbal, non-pharmacological treatment interventions, abstracts, pragmatic trials, controlled trials of acupuncture, among others. Authors are required to consult relevant CONSORT extensions.

  • Observational studies

Case-control, Cohort, and Cross-sectional studies of the prevalence, causes, mechanisms, diagnosis, course and prognosis, treatment, and prevention of disease (observational studies) must follow the STROBE Statement guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed checklist. Molecular Epidemiology works should use the STROBE-ME extension for Molecular Epidemiology. Genetic Risk Predictions studies should use the GRIPS Statement. Genetic association studies’ reporting must follow the STREGA guidelines. All observational studies should be registered in a World Health Organization (WHO)-compliant registry.

  • Study protocols

Studies reporting on standard protocol items for clinical trials must follow the SPIRIT Statement and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed SPIRIT checklist. Specialized guidelines are available for reporting protocols for inclusion of patient-reported outcomes, clinical trials with traditional Chinese medicine, n-of-1 trials, and interventions involving artificial intelligence.

  • Diagnostic/prognostic studies

Studies reporting on diagnostic accuracy must follow the STARD guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed STARD checklist. Specialized reporting guidelines are available for studies of diagnostic test accuracy in dementia, paratuberculosis in ruminants, studies that use Bayesian Latent Class Models, and reporting abstracts of diagnostic accuracy studies in journals or conferences.

  • Clinical practice guidelines

Studies reporting on clinical practice guidelines must follow the AGREE guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed AGREE checklist. 

  • Qualitative research

Studies reporting on qualitative research studies must follow the SRQR guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed SRQR checklist.

  • Animal preclinical studies

Studies reporting on studies using laboratory animals must follow the ARRIVE Guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed ARRIVE checklist.

  • Quality improvement

Studies reporting on quality improvement in healthcare must follow the SQUIRE Standards and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed SQUIRE checklist.

  • Economic evaluation

Studies reporting on economic evaluations of health interventions must follow the CHEERS guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed CHEERS checklist.

Reviews

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses reporting on effects of interventions, etiology, prevalence, diagnosis, or prognosis must follow the PRISMA guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed PRISMA checklist. Reporting of randomized, controlled trials meta-analyses must follow the MOOSE guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed MOOSE checklist. Authors are also encouraged to register their reviews with PROSPERO. Reviews should not exceed 4500 words including main text, figures, tables and references. The general format for review articles includes title, highlights, abstract (250-word limit), introduction, methods, results, discussion, conclusion.

Narrative review articles must be scholarly, balanced, and comprehensive, reporting on topics within the scope of JOGECA. Quality assessment for narrative review articles must follow the SANRA guidelines. They should not exceed 3000 words including main text, figures, tables and references. The structure of narrative reviews is similar to systematic reviews.

Case reports

Case reports of clinical significance and that may contribute to the scientific body of knowledge may be considered by JOGECA. Reporting of case reports must follow the CARE guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed CARE checklist and a signed informed consent.  They should not exceed 1500 words including main text, figures, tables and references. The structure of case reports includes structured abstract, introduction, case presentation, discussion (and conclusion). Patient informed consent is mandatory for publication of case reports.

Case series

Case series may be considered if they contribute to the scientific body of knowledge. Reporting of case series must follow the CARE guidelines and manuscripts must be accompanied with a completed CARE checklist. They should not exceed 2000 words including main text, figures, tables and references. The structure of the case series is similar to that of case reports.

Clinical images in obstetrics and gynecology

Clinical images of clinical significance or rare occurrences in Obstetrics and Gynecology may be considered for publication in JOGECA. Clinical images should not have any patient identifiable data. They should have no more than 300 words and only one figure; however, the figure may contain 2 images, labeled (a) and (b). Clinical images require an abstract of 25 words and keywords. Clinical images must be referenced with no more than 5 references. 

Editorial

Editorials are usually written by the journal’s Editor-in-Chief or senior editors. Editorial commentaries will also be invited from subject matter experts. They are limited to 500 words. 

Letter to the editor

Letters discussing articles previously published in JOGECA will be considered. Letters will be sent to the authors of the article being discussed for their response. The letters are unstructured and are limited to 500 words.

Short communication

Data from original research that has not been finalized will be considered. These articles are limited to 2000 words and are structured as original articles. 

Commentary, Opinion, and Perspective articles

Commentary, opinion, and perspective articles commenting, expressing personal opinion, or new viewpoints about existing research or questions within the journal’s scope will be considered. These articles should be factual and backed by scientific evidence. These articles may assume structure for original articles where deemed relevant. They should not exceed 2000 words including main text, figures, tables and references.

Tribute, In memoriam

Tributes to departed colleagues with significant contributions to Obstetrics and Gynecology are invited. Submissions are limited to 400 words.

Recommendations and word count limits for manuscripts 

Article type

Guideline/ Recommendation

Word count (abstract)

Tables/Figures

References

Case report

CARE

1500 (150)

3

10

Case series

CARE

2000 (150)

3

10

Original research

CONSORT, STROBE, SPIRIT, STARD, AGREE, SRQR, ARRIVE, SQUIRE, or CHEERS, depending on the study type

3500 (250)

6

30

Systematic review, meta-analysis

PRISMA 

4500 (250)

6

100

Narrative review

  

3000 (250)

3

30

Short communication

Similar to original research

2000

3

10

Commentary, opinion, and perspective

  

2000

3

5

Peer review policy

JOGECA operates a double-anonymous peer review approach to safeguard against peer review bias that may result from author, geographical or institutional identification. Articles submitted to JOGECA must adhere to article preparation guidelines to enable double-anonymous peer review. Separate files should be sent for the title page and an anonymized manuscript. Identifiable information, including the title page, ethical registration, acknowledgments and mentions of authors or institutions must be excluded in anonymized manuscripts.

Cover letter

Case reports and case series, Original research, and review articles must be accompanied with a cover letter addressed to the Editor-in-Chief. The cover letter should include (1) title of the manuscript, (2) declaration that the article has not be published nor is it being considered for publication in another journal, (3) summary of the submitted work and its significance and relevance to the journal audience, (4) statement that all authors approve the manuscript and submission, (5) ethical consideration statement, including approval and registration, permission and consents for studies that involved human subjects, (6) statement that signed informed consent was obtained from the patient or next of kin for whom a case report or image is submitted (a copy of the informed signed consent must be sent), (7) correspondence information for the article. 

Article structure and manuscript requirements

Manuscripts should conform to the uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals (http://www.icmje.org/) and standards defined in the Helsinki Declaration. Reporting of findings should follow relevant recommendations as described in CARE, CONSORT, STROBE, SPIRIT, STARD, AGREE, SRQR, ARRIVE, SQUIRE, CHEERS, and PRISMA statements.

  • Original article, reviews

Title page 

The title page should have the following:

  • Manuscript title, names, education qualifications, affiliations, and institutions of authors
  • Email address of the corresponding author
  • Running head of not more than (40) characters
  • 3-5 keywords for indexing and retrieval of the article
  • Total word count
  • A declaration to the effect that the paper has not been published elsewhere and/or is not under consideration for publication elsewhere (except as an abstract or preliminary report)
  • Statement on conflict of interest

Highlights

Highlights are required for original and review articles for publication in JOGECA as they may help increase the online presence of your article. They consist of bulleted points that capture the main results of the reported research as well as new methods used in the study (if any). Highlights are limited to 75 words.

Abstract

The abstract should not exceed 250 words. It should be structured to include the background, objective(s), methods, results and conclusion. The background lays the rationale for study culminating in study objective(s). The methods section included a sequential outline of study design, study setting, study population, data collection and management, and data analysis plan. The results section outlines the main study findings. The conclusion should be based on the study findings. The abstract should not be referenced.

Graphical abstract (optional)

Optional graphical abstracts are encouraged to help capture wider attention where deemed relevant. It should summarize article contents concisely. The image size should be a minimum of 531 × 1328 pixels (h × w). The image should be readable at a size of 5 × 13 cm using a regular screen resolution of 96 dpi. EPS, MS Office, PDF or TIFF file types are acceptable.

Keywords

3-5 keywords that have been used in the manuscript must be included in all articles for archival and retrieval of the article.

Main text

Introduction

The introduction should not be more than one page (about 2-3 paragraphs), clearly describing the problem and justifying the importance of the study, culminating with study objective(s) in the last paragraph. References to other published studies should be made.

Methods

The methods section aims at providing essential information to readers to replicate the study. The sections must include the study design, study setting, study population (give inclusion and exclusion criteria), data collection and management: tools, variables, procedures, data analysis approach, and ethical consideration. Ethical registration details must not be included in the anonymized text.

Results

Only results that answer the objective(s) should be presented in a logical manner. A maximum of 6 tables/figures for both original articles and reviews. Descriptions of tables/figures should appear above table/figure. Titles of table and figure titles should be descriptive enough to allow understanding by the reader without reading the results section. Tables/figures should be numbered consecutively in Arabic numbers. If abbreviations are used in tables/figures, they should be described in full in a legend below the table/figure. Tables and figures should be inserted into the text where they are described.

Discussion (study strengths and limitations)

The discussion should be in relation to the study objective(s), reference to results should be made without restating results in totality again. The discussion must cover the following: the main finding(s) of the study, possible reasons for the finding(s), how the finding(s) compare with previous studies, reference to other studies with similar and contrasting findings. Limitations and strengths (value) of the study should also be included just before the conclusion. The implications of the study: how can the results be generalized or applied) to other settings

Conclusion (and recommendations)

The conclusion should be short, concise and based only on the results presented. Recommendations may also be included.

References

References to other studies should be cited using the Vancouver citation format. References should be numbered in the order in which they are cited in the text in Arabic numbers. References cited more than once should retain the same number. The references at the end of the article should be listed in numerical order. 

  • References to an article should include the names of the authors, followed by their initials (list all authors when six or fewer, when more than six, list six and add ‘et al’, the full title of the article in its original language, the name of the journal in its usual abbreviated form, year of publication, volume number (issue), first and last page numbers in full: e.g., Kosgei RJ, Ndavi PM, Ong'ech JO, Abuya JM, Siika AM, Wools-Kaloustian K, et al. Symptom screen: diagnostic usefulness in detecting pulmonary tuberculosis in HIV-infected pregnant women in Kenya. PHA 2011;1(2): 30-33. 
  • References to book chapters should include names of the authors as above, the title of the chapter with the word “In” preceding the reference of the work as above e.g., Disaia PJ, Creaseman WT. Invasive cancer of the vulva. In: Disci PJ, Creasman WT, Editors, Clinical gynaecology oncology. St Louis. C.V Mosby 1984; 214-219. 
  • Electronic references: should be given only when an original citation is unavailable, html address and date of access should be provided. 
  • References of articles accepted for publication: should give the name of the article with mention (‘in press’). 
  • Personal communications should not be included as references.

  • Case reports and case series

Abstract

Case report and case series abstract should not exceed 150 words. It should be structured to include the background, case presentation, and conclusion. The background lays the rationale for the presented case. The case presentation summarizes the presenting concerns of the patient (such as chief complaints or symptoms, diagnoses), interventions (such as diagnostic, preventive, prognostic, therapeutic exchange), and (3) outcomes. The conclusion summarizes the key clinical message (KCM) being communicated by the case report.

Introduction

The introduction should not be more than one paragraph, clearly describing the problem and laying the rationale of the case, culminating with case introduction in the last sentence. References to other published studies should be made.

Case presentation

The case presentation includes a sequential and comprehensive outline of the presenting concerns of the patient (such as chief complaints or symptoms, diagnoses), interventions (such as diagnostic, preventive, prognostic, therapeutic exchange), and (3) outcomes. References should not be made in the case presentation.

Discussion (and conclusion)

The discussion should be in relation to the presented case and objective(s), references to similar cases or studies should be made without restating the case presentation in totality again. The discussion must cover the following: the main findings of the case, how it compares with other cases: reference to other cases or studies with similar findings, limitations and strengths (value) of the case, and the implications of the case.

Conclusion

The conclusion should be short, concise and based only on the presented case. The conclusion should highlight the key clinical message (KCM) being communicated by the case report.

Declarations

All manuscripts submitted to JOGECA must be accompanied with the following statements as deemed relevant.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Manuscripts reporting studies that involved human participants, human data or tissue must submit ethical approval statements and consent. The ethical statement must include the name of the ethics committee and the study’s ethical registrational number. Studies on animals must also provide ethical approval statements.

Consent for publication

Manuscripts that contain personal data, including individual details, images, or videos must be accompanied with informed consent from that person or next of kin in case of children or deceased persons. Case reports and series must be accompanied with informed consent at the time of submission for publication.

Availability of data and material

Manuscripts submitted to JOGECA must include a statement on availability of data and materials. The statement should include information on where the supporting data can be found, including hyperlinks to datasets generated from the study or  public archived datasets.

Competing interests

Authors are required to declare any affiliations or relationships, financial or non-financial that could be viewed as potentially competing interests. This information should be as accurate and detailed as possible as it will be published in the final accepted manuscripts.

Funding

Authors are required to disclose study funders and whether they played any role in the manuscript. This information should be as accurate and detailed as possible as it will be published in the final accepted manuscripts.

Authors’ contributions

The individual contributions of authors for the submitted manuscript should be specified. Please refer to the Editorial policies on authorship qualifications. Authors’ initials should be used and their contribution to the manuscript highlighted.

Acknowledgement

Those who have given substantial contributions to the manuscript and do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged with their consent.

Tables

Titles of tables should be descriptive enough to allow understanding by the reader without reading the results section. Tables should be numbered consecutively in Arabic numbers. If abbreviations are used, they should be described in full in a legend below the table. Tables should be inserted into the text where they are described. It is the sole responsibility of  authors’ to obtain permissions to reproduce tables published elsewhere. Permission should be included in the table legend and reference to the original source should be made.

Figures, illustrations, and photographs

Titles of figures should be descriptive enough to allow understanding by the reader without reading the results section. Figures should be numbered consecutively in Arabic numbers. If abbreviations are used, they should be described in full in a legend below the figure. Figures should be inserted into the text where they are described. It is the sole responsibility of  authors’ to obtain permissions to reproduce figures or illustrations published elsewhere. Permission should be included in the figure legend and reference to the original source should be made.

Figures, including imaging studies or photographs of the patient in case reports and case series should ensure anonymity of the patient. Written consent should be obtained from the patient for publication of patient photographs. 

Video illustrations and presentations

Short videos to augment submitted manuscripts may be considered for publication. Videos demonstrating techniques, procedures, and presentations may be considered. Videos should be free of promotional material and those on case reports should be accompanied with informed patient consent for publication of the video. The length of videos is limited to no more than 10 minutes. Shorter versions (summaries) of the videos of no more than 2 minutes are encouraged for posting in the journal online platforms. The language should be in English and where the original language is not in English, translation should be sorted by the author. Standard video settings should be applied, including adequate lighting, noise-free background, dimensions (854 x 480 (480p), 1280 x 720 (720p), 1920 x 1080 (1080p), 2560 x 1440 (1440p) and 3840 x 2160 (2160p)), 16:9 aspect ratio, and format (3GPP, .AVI, .FLV, .MOV, MP4, .MPEG4, WebM, and .WMV). Authors may use external software to edit the raw coverage for clarity and quality enhancement.