The Annals of African Medicine subscribes to the "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts submitted to Biomedical Journals" as published in New England Journal of Medicine 1997:336:309-315. The journal will publish articles in all fields and aspects of medicine in Africa and also from elsewhere, which have a bearing on health care delivery in Africa. Papers will be published under the following sections:

• Editorial comments
• Original articles
• Review articles
• Short reports
• Case reports
• Medical devices and innovations
• Continuing education
• Letters to the editor
• Opinions
• Clinical images
• Book reviews
• Reports of clinical meetings or conferences

Articles are published with the understanding that they have not been previously published or simultaneously submitted to another journal for consideration for publication. The authors accept to transfer the copyright of accepted and published articles to the Annals of African Medicine. A letter signed by all authors stating this fact should accompany each article. Authors should submit the original manuscript along with two clear copies and three copies of all tables and illustrations to:

Bello B. Shehu, FRCSI, FWACS
Editor-in-Chief
Annals of African Medicine
Office of the Chief Medical Director
Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital,
Sokoto 840001, Nigeria
E-mail: bellobalas@yahoo.co.uk

OR 

Assistant Editor-in-Chief
Annals of African Medicine
P. O. Box 76, Zaria, 810001
Nigeria
E-mail: annafrmed@skannet.com

Manuscripts

Manuscripts should be typed in double line spacing on A4, heavy bond paper, with a 4cm margin on the left side. The right hand margin should not be justified. The script should be clearly divided into the following sections with each section beginning on a new page. 

Title page

This should bear the title of the paper, the name(s) of the author(s), the place where the work was carried out and the address of the corresponding author, including e-mail address and fax number.

Abstract

This should not be more than 300 words and should be structured, consisting of four paragraphs labeled; Background, Methods, Results and Conclusions. Each paragraph should describe respectively, the problem, how the study was performed, the important results and the conclusion from the results. The abstract for review articles, short reports, case reports and surgical techniques need not be in this format. A French translation of the abstract should also be provided.

Text

This section includes introduction, methodology, results, discussion and acknowledgement.

References

These should be typed double-spaced and numbered consecutively according to their first citation in the text. The referencing should be in accordance with the uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals. Journal titles should be cited according to the way they appear in the index medicus/Medline. For journals that are not indexed, the full name should be given. All authors should be listed where they are six or less; if more than six, then list first three, followed by et al.

Abstracts, information from manuscripts not yet accepted or personal communication should not be included in the list of references, but can be included in the text. It is the author(s) responsibility to ensure that references are properly cited and listed. Manuscripts with incomplete references will be returned and publication delayed.

Tables and illustrations

Tables should be typed double-spaced and numbered in Arabic numerals and have appropriate title. Vertical and horizontal internal lines should be excluded. Only relevant tables should be presented and must not duplicate information already presented in detail in the results section. Illustration should be unmounted glossy prints or professionally drawn. They should be numbered in Arabic numerals and have appropriate title in pencil on the back.

An arrow should indicate the top.

Each illustration must be accompanied by a legend, typed on a separate sheet. For photomicrographs, the magnification and staining methods should be indicated. Authors will be requested to make a contribution towards the processing of coloured photographs. It is the responsibility of authors to obtain permission for already published tables or illustrations. Such writ-ten permission should accompany the manuscripts at the time of submission.

Ethical Issues

Any original text quoted from other authors or sources must be formally cited and appropriately referenced.

The protocol for any investigations or studies on humans should be approved by an ethical committee or the relevant authority on ethical issues. Consent must also be obtained from the patient for such studies. A statement to this effect should be included in the manuscript.

Tables or illustrations, which have been previously published, should be accompanied by the written consent or permission of the copyright holder, an acknowledgement included in the caption and the full reference included in the list of references.

Where a patient may be identified from an illustration or the text, written permission must be obtained from that patient and submitted along with the manuscript. Authors should avoid potentially defamatory statements.

Conflict of Interest and Sources of Funding

Authors should provide a clear statement regarding any conflicts of interests. There should also be a statement on any sources of funding.

Peer Review Process

All manuscripts submitted to the Journal are sent to two independent experts in that field for review. Manuscripts with significant statistical component will be reviewed by the statistical editor and if necessary, by another statisticican. The comments of the reviewers will be communicated to the authors, even if the paper is rejected. Communication of the reviewers' comments to authors is for their information, and the journal is unable to enter into further correspondence regarding such papers. All efforts will be made to keep the duration of review as short as possible and editorial decisions will, as much as possible be communicated to authors within 4 months of receipt of their manuscripts. Authors are advised to keep copies of all materials submitted to the Journal.

Electronic Submissions

Submission of electronic manuscripts is encouraged by the Journal. Such manuscripts should be on a high quality CD-Rom or Flash drive, should be in Microsoft Word. A hard copy of the manuscripts and relevant illustrations should accompany the diskette. Authors will be required to submit their manuscripts in electronic form at the time of acceptance of their papers.

Units of Measurements

All measurements should be expressed in System International (SI) units.

Proofs and Reprints

Authors will receive galley proofs of their papers to be checked for correction. Such corrections should be limited to typesetting errors only and should be returned within two (2) days so as not to delay publication.

Reprints are not free. Authors can order for reprints at the time of acceptance of their papers at a cost, which will be indicated at that time.

Submission Fee

Each manuscript must be accompanied by a non-refundable manuscript processing fee of N10, 000 (Ten thousand Naira) or US$100 (One hundred US Dollars). This should be in a bank draft or certified cheque, made payable to Annals of African Medicine. Manuscripts submitted without this fee will be returned.

Note: The contents of each published paper are the opinion and responsibility of the author (s). They do not reflect the opinion or policy of the Journal.

Information for authors is published in the first issue (No. 1, March) of each volume of the journal.

Last updated - July 28, 2009