L25: How to Write a Scientific Manuscript Flashcards
What is the abstract?
- often the only part of the study that will be read
- all authors must approve it
- editors may screen papers based on the abstracts
What do structured abstracts for the BMJ need?
- 300-400 words
- structured format
- active voice
- results plus p-values
- percentages with denominators
- no references
- trial registration details
What is the IMRaD structure for research papers?
- introduction – why ask this research question
- methods – what did you do
- results – what did you find
- discussion – what might it mean
What should be included in an introduction?
- brief background for this audience
- 3-4 paragraphs only – mind the word limit
- what is known/not known on research question
- do not bore readers, editors, reviewers
- do not boast about how much you have read
- research question in last paragraph of introduction – state why it matters
What should be included in the methods?
- should be like a recipe
- most important section for informed readers
- follow reporting guidelines – ie. CONSORT statement
- describe measures to ensure ethical conduct
- fully describe and give references for lab/stats methods
- PECO/PICO elements of the study
What are some of the ethical aspects to consider in the methods section?
- what was the consent procedure
- were there any deviations from normal practice
- might publication reveal patients’ identities
- what burden was imposed
- what are the risks and benefits for participants/others
- how might society or future patients benefit in time
What are the PECO/PICO elements of a study?
- P: which patients, which population, what problem(s)
- I or E: which intervention(s) or exposure(s)
- C: which comparison group, any randomization or stratification
- O: what outcome(s) or endpoint(s), define primary and secondary outcome(s)
What should be included in the results?
- report results fully and honestly, as pre-specified
- text (story), tables (evidence), figures (highlights)
- report primary outcomes first
- give confidence intervals for main results
- report essential summary statistics
- leave out non-essential tables and figures – these can be included as supplementary files
- do not start discussion here
What should be included in the discussion?
- do not simply repeat the introduction
- statement of principal findings
- strengths and weaknesses of the study
- strengths and weaknesses in relation to other studies and key differences
- possible mechanisms and explanations for findings
- potential implications for clinicians or policymakers
- unanswered questions and future research
What is an impact factor of a journal?
measure of the frequency with which the average article in a journal has been cited in a particular year
How is the impact factor of a journal calculated?
example: for a journal in 2017
- (total citations to scholarly articles (published in 2015 and 2016) in 2017) / (number of citable articles in the journals in 2015 and 2016)
- citing works may be articles published in the same journal, however most are from different journals, proceedings, or books indexed by Web of Science
What does an impact factor of 1.0 mean?
on average, the articles published 1-2 years ago have been cited one time
What does an impact factor of 2.5 mean?
on average, the articles published 1-2 years ago have been cited 2.5 times
What are the limitations of journal impact factor?
- skewed by a minority of highly cited articles – ie. review articles
- cannot be compared across fields
- higher in research fields with literature that is cited quickly
- may be artificially inflated by ‘self citation’ by journals
- calculated using the SCI database that includes only some journals, with a bias towards journals in English
