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Oral Diseases

Instructions for authors

EDITORIAL POLICY
The journal is devoted to research into oral diseases and will fulfil the need for a multidisciplinary approach. The editors will consider for publication all suitable papers dealing directly or indirectly with oral disease in man including the basic sciences, well designed and controlled clinical research and analytical epidemiology. The essential requirement is that research findings are hypothesis driven. The aetiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of all diseases and disorders of the mouth and oro-facial area will be covered, including periodontium; teeth; temporomandibular joints; oral mucosa; jaws and facial bones; facial skin and salivary glands. No discipline within the biological, physical or behavioural sciences is excluded but the emphasis will clearly be on oral pathology, oral microbiology, oral medicine, oral physiology and biochemistry and related clinical sciences. Papers dealing with in vitro or in vivo model systems in experimental animals will also be accepted if they have obvious relevance to the understanding of pathogenesis and/or management of disease. The editors also encourage submission of review articles, reports of meetings, book reviews and correspondence in the form of letters to the editor. We have a clear and restricted policy on case reports, which is detailed below. Short articles of significant interest will be published rapidly.

While authors are asked to write their manuscripts in English using an easily readable style, editorial assistance for authors not completely fluent in English may be available. Spelling and phraseology should conform either to standard English or to standard American usage and should be consistent throughout the paper.

PREPARATION OF MANUSCRIPTS

Submissions should be typed double-spaced with a wide margin using one side of the paper only. Four copies should be submitted to the editorial office. The paper should be arranged as follows:

1. Title page This should bear the title of the paper, the names of all the authors and their affiliations and the name, full postal address, and telephone and fax numbers of the author to whom correspondence and reprint requests are to be sent. There should be a running title of not more than 50 letters and spaces. Please provide three to six keywords (chosen from Index Medicus, Medical Subject Headings if possible.)
2. Abstract This should not exceed 200 words. It should be written in a style that conveys the essential purpose and message of the paper in abbreviated form set out under the following sectional headings, each followed by an explicit sentence or two: Objective(s); Design; Setting (if relevant); Subject(s) (or Materials) and Methods; Main outcome measures; Results; Conclusion(s).
3. Introduction This should assume that the reader is knowledgeable in the field and should therefore be brief. It should clearly state the hypothesis underlying the study and/or aims and objectives.
4. Materials (or Patients/Subjects) and Methods Methods that have been published in detail elsewhere should not be described in full but an outline of essential steps should be given. SI units (eg platelets x 10⁹ 1^-1) should be used throughout. A clear statement of statistical method is essential.
5. Results These should be presented succinctly in the same order as the experiments are described Materials and Methods. Tables and especially graphics are encouraged for quantitative information.
6. Discussion This should comment critically on the probity of the results obtained, their relationship to existing knowledge and the significance for improved understanding oral diseases. Speculation and new hypotheses are encouraged, provided they are firmly rooted in the data presented. Conclusions should be drawn.
7. Acknowledgements
8. References Only papers of quality closely related to the authors’ work should be quoted: quote original work rather than subsequent Reviews. Authors will be responsible for the accuracy of the references. In the text a reference should be cited by author(s) and date. Where there are two authors use the form: (Jones and Smith, 1986). Where there are there are more than two authors, use the form: (Jones et al, 1986). At the end of the manuscript the citations should be presented in alphabetical order, with the authors’ surnames and initials inverted. All authors should be quoted up to a maximum of three followed by et al. Titles of medical periodicals should be abbreviated. The volume number and first and last page numbers for each reference should be provided. Abstracts and letters must be identified as such and, in general, are best avoided. Papers in press may be included in the list of references.
   
   Personal communications may be simply referred to in the text; authors must obtain permission from the individual concerned to quote his or her unpublished work.
   
   Examples of References
   Journal article, up to three authors:

   Reichart P (1993). The biological approach in oral diagnosis. Int Dent J 43: 355-358.

   Complete book:

   Scully C, Cawson RA (1993). Medical problems in dentistry. Wright: Bristol.

   Chapter in book:

   Moller IJ (1992). Endemic dental fluorosis. In: Prabhu SR, Wilson DF, Daftary DK et al, eds. Oral diseases in the tropics. Oxford Medical Publications: Oxford, pp 68-77.

   Agency publication:

   Gart JJ, Krewski D, Lee PN et al (1986). Statistical methods in cancer research. Volume III. The design and analysis of long term animal experiments. International Agency for Research on Cancer: Lyon. IARC Scientific Publication No. 79.

   Dissertation or thesis:

   Wade WG (1989). The effects of local antimicrobial and mechanical therapy on the subgingival microflora in chronic peridontitis. PhD Thesis, University of Wales.

9. Tables Each table should be numbered consecutively with an Arabic numeral. Each should have a separate caption or title. Methods not described in the text and abbreviations should be explained at the foot of the table. Tables should be referred to specifically in the text of the paper but must be typed on separate sheets of paper at the back of the manuscript.
10. Figures These should be in numerical order with Arabic numerals. Each figure should have a title and a detailed legend, as appropriate, listed consecutively on a separate sheet of paper headed ‘Titles and legends to figures’. Figures should be referred to specifically in the text of the paper. Figures, including photographs, line drawings or graphs, should be submitted as glossy prints about 1.5 times final size which upon reduction should fit column widths of the journal. Three originals of each illustration are required. Figures drawn by computer graphics are acceptable for publication provided the print-out is clear. Photo micrographs and photo macrographs must carry a magnification scale.
    
    Colour photographs can be reproduced but the authors will be expected to contribute towards the cost of the publication.
    
    All figures should be labelled on the back with the name of the journal, first author and figure number.

Editorials or Brief Reviews
These will be solicited by the editors. Authors wishing to prepare review articles or book reviews should contact one of the four editors.

Case Reports The editors will consider for publication Case Reports that illustrate points not previously reported in the literature. Single case reports are discouraged except on rare disease or on hitherto unknown conditions or syndromes. Collections of diverse cases, illustrating various presentations or management would be of intrinsic merit. They should not exceed two printed pages in length; the summary should not exceed 1000 words. The number of references should not exceed six.

Letters to the Editor
Letters to the Editor are encouraged. They may deal with material in papers published in Oral Diseases or they may raise new issues.

EDITORIAL OFFICE
A covering letter, signed by all named authors, accepting joint and several responsibility must accompany all submissions. Professors NW Johnson and C Scully are the senior editors. Manuscripts should be sent to:

All other editorial correspondence may be sent to either Professor Johnson at the above address or to:

Contributors in Asia and the Pacific may correspond with either the London or Asian editorial offices. The Asian receiving editor is:

SUBMISSION OF MATERIAL ON FLOPPY DISK
The preparation of your paper and the submission of hard copy to the editor should follow exactly the procedure set out elsewhere in these instructions. If, however, the paper has been prepared using WordPerfect, Word or WordStar you may also submit to the editorial office the final version of your paper stored on disk. This may facilitate handling in the office. The disk should be clearly labelled with the name, the title of the paper and the name of the word processing programme, together with the file name under which the paper is stored.

PROOFS
One proof will be sent to the principal author who should read it carefully for errors. The corrected copy must be returned to the publishers as quickly as possible. A photocopy of the corrections made should be retained in case of query. Major alterations to the text cannot be accepted at this stage. The principal authors must complete and return to the publish the Copyright assignment form enclosed with the proofs.

OFFPRINTS
Twenty-five offprints will supplied free of charge to the principal author. Additional offprints may be ordered on the form accompanying the proofs.

Business correspondence and enquiries relating to advertising, subscriptions, backnumbers or reprints should be addressed to the relevant person at Nature Publishing Group, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, UK.

Last Updated 21 March 2001