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Guide for Authors

(updated on 18 March 2024)


1. General Information about the Hong Kong Medical Journal

The Hong Kong Medical Journal (HKMJ) is the official peer-reviewed publication of the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine (HKAM) and the Hong Kong Medical Association (HKMA). It is indexed in MEDLINE / Index Medicus, Science Citation Index Expanded, Current Contents – Clinical Medicine, BIOSIS Previews, Embase / Excerpta Medica, Biological Abstracts, SCOPUS, and Index Copernicus, and is published six times per year by the HKAM Press.

The HKMJ publishes high-quality articles on a wide range of topics pertaining to the art and science of medicine. It is distributed to members of the HKAM and the HKMA as part of their membership. It is also available to non-members on a subscription basis.

The opinions expressed in the HKMJ are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the HKAM, the HKMA, the institutions to which the authors are affiliated, or the publisher.

Copyright © Hong Kong Academy of Medicine. CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

For enquiries, please contact the HKMJ Editorial Office:

Managing Editor
Hong Kong Medical Journal
10/F, HKAM Jockey Club Building
99 Wong Chuk Hang Road
Aberdeen, Hong Kong, China

Tel.: (852) 2871 8823
Fax: (852) 2515 9061
Email: hkmj@hkam.org.hk

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2. Preparing Manuscripts for Submission

(a) Manuscript Categories with Templates

The HKMJ publishes manuscripts in the following categories. Please click on the respective link for templates and detailed submission requirements:

Original Article
Review Article
Medical Practice
Perspective
Case Report
Pictorial Medicine
Editorial
Commentary
Letter to the Editor
Video Clip
Supplementary Material

 

Templates are available to help authors format their submission. Save the templates on your computer by clicking the appropriate links below. Click the files to open and save (in .docx format) on your computer.

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Original Article

Template:  Manuscript /  Title page

Original Articles include controlled trials, interventional studies, studies of screening and diagnostic tests, outcome studies, cost-effectiveness analyses, and large-scale epidemiological studies. All Original Articles should be prepared according to the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/manuscript-preparation/preparing-for-submission.html).

Research Reporting Guidelines

Reporting guidelines (eg, CONSORT, STROBE) help improve accuracy, transparency, and completeness of health research publications, and can be downloaded from the EQUATOR Network website (www.equator-network.org). Authors who submit Original Articles are required to complete the relevant reporting checklist by indicating where (eg, which section / paragraph / page no.) the required information is provided in the manuscript. It is the author's responsibility to ensure that their paper adheres to the appropriate reporting guideline and is properly formatted as such. Authors should also include in the Methods section a phrase indicating which reporting guideline has been implemented in their manuscript.

The completed reporting guideline can be uploaded at a later stage in the submission process on the Attach Files page.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: ≤ 250 words; structured with the following headings: Introduction:, Methods:, Results:, Conclusions :, Trial Registration: (if applicable).

New knowledge added by this study: 1 to 3 points should be provided.

Implications for clinical practice or policy: 1 to 3 points should be provided.

Text (excludes abstract and references) : ≤ 3000 words

Introduction: Include why this study was conducted and what the aims and objectives of the study were. The rationale for the study should be summarised and pertinent background material outlined. The Introduction should not include findings or conclusions.

Methods: These should be described in sufficient detail to leave the reader in no doubt as to how the results are derived. Statistical analysis and power calculation (if applicable) should be included here.

Results: These should be presented in a logical sequence in the text, tables, and illustrations; repetitive presentation of the same data in different forms should be avoided. This section should not include material appropriate to the Discussion. Results must be statistically analysed where appropriate.

Discussion: Data given in the Results section should not be repeated here. This section should consider the results in relation to any hypothesis advanced in the Introduction. This may include an evaluation of methodology and of the relationship of new information to the existing body of knowledge in that field. Strengths and limitations of the study should be mentioned.

Conclusion: Conclusions could be stated in a separate section or incorporated into the final paragraph and should be commensurate with—and completely supported by—data in the text.

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Ethics approval: Please provide an ethics approval statement with approval/reference number (or a waiver by the ethics committee). Please also provide a patient consent statement or state if the requirement for patient consent was waived by the ethics board.

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 40. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables plus figures: ≤ 6. Please check below for further details on tables and figures.

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Review Article

Template:  Manuscript

Review Articles are usually invited, but unsolicited reviews of good quality, especially scoping or systematic reviews or meta-analyses, may be considered. A Review Article is a systematic critical assessment of literature and data sources pertaining to a particular clinical topic, and emphasise factors such as cause, diagnosis, prognosis, therapy, or prevention. All articles and data sources reviewed should include information about the specific type of study or analysis, population, intervention, exposure, and test or outcomes. All articles and data sources should be selected systematically for inclusion in the review and critically evaluated. The selection process should also be described in the paper.

Research Reporting Guidelines

Reporting guidelines help improve accuracy, transparency, and completeness of health research publications, and can be downloaded from the EQUATOR Network website (www.equator-network.org). Authors who submit Review Articles are required to complete a suitable reporting checklist (eg, PRISMA; www.prisma-statement.org/) by indicating where (eg which section / paragraph / page no.) the required information is provided in the manuscript. It is the author's responsibility to ensure that their paper adheres to the appropriate reporting guideline and is properly formatted as such. Authors should also include in the Methods section a phrase indicating which reporting guideline has been implemented in their manuscript.

The completed reporting guideline can be uploaded at a later stage in the submission process on the Attach Files page.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: ≤ 250 words, structured or unstructured, depending on the nature of the review.

Text (excludes abstract and references) : ≤ 4000 words

Introduction: Include why this study was conducted, what were the aims and objectives of the study. The rationale for the study should be summarised and pertinent background material outlined. The Introduction should not include findings or conclusions.

Main Text: Any methods and results should be included here, with a thorough discussion of the literature.

Conclusion: Conclusions should be incorporated into the final paragraph and should be commensurate with—and completely supported by—data in the text.

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 60. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables plus figures: ≤ 6. Please check below for further details on tables and figures..

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Medical Practice

Template:  Manuscript /  Title page

Medical Practice papers should target a single therapeutic or diagnostic intervention for a reasonably common clinical problem; it can be regarded as an advance on earlier / past practice. These papers should be supported by compelling and robust evidence, and clearly and concisely indicate in what way practice needs to change / advance. Such advocated change should be both feasible and beneficial. Position statements, consensus statements, and clinical practice guidelines are published under Medical Practice category.

Research Reporting Guidelines:

Reporting guidelines help improve accuracy, transparency, and completeness of health research publications, and can be downloaded from the EQUATOR Network website (www.equator-network.org). Authors who submit Medical Practice papers are required to complete a suitable reporting checklist (eg, AGREE; www.agreetrust.org/) by indicating where (eg which section / paragraph / page no.) the required information is provided in the manuscript. It is the author's responsibility to ensure that their paper adheres to the appropriate reporting guideline and is properly formatted as such. Authors should also include in the Methods section a phrase indicating which reporting guideline has been implemented in their manuscript.

The completed reporting guideline can be uploaded at a later stage in the submission process on the Attach Files page.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Unstructured abstract with ≤ 250 words

Text (excludes abstract and references) : ≤ 3000 words

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Ethics approval: Please provide an ethics approval statement with approval/reference number (or a waiver by the ethics committee). Please also provide a patient consent statement or state if the requirement for patient consent was waived by the ethics board.

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 40. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables plus figures: ≤ 6. Please check below for further details on tables and figures.

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Perspective

Description: Perspectives are narrative reviews of the literature discussing recent developments in a specific topic or guiding practice for clinicians, and may include the perspective or opinions of the author(s). New findings or patient data are not compulsory. 

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Not required

Text (excludes references): ≤ 2000 words

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 20. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Table or Figure: 1

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Case Report

Template:  Manuscript /  Title page

Case Reports present the diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of a patient with an unusual or unique aspect. The acceptance rate of case reports is very low; only exceptional case reports that deal with a clinical problem of sufficient interest are accepted. Authors must follow the CARE guidelines (www.care-statement.org/) when writing a Case Report; a CARE checklist (www.care-statement.org/downloads) should be included with the submission.

Research Reporting Guidelines:

Reporting guidelines help improve accuracy, transparency, and completeness of health research publications, and can be downloaded from the EQUATOR Network website (www.equator-network.org). Authors who submit Case Reports are required to complete the CARE reporting checklist (www.care-statement.org/downloads) by indicating where (eg which section / paragraph / page no.) the required information is provided in the manuscript. It is the author's responsibility to ensure that their paper adheres to the appropriate reporting guideline and is properly formatted as such. Authors should also include in the Methods section a phrase indicating which reporting guideline has been implemented in their manuscript.

The completed reporting guideline can be uploaded at a later stage in the submission process on the Attach Files page.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Not required

Text (excludes references) : ≤ 1000 words; text should be formatted under two headings only: Case report and Discussion. Appropriate clinical information should include year, month, and place of presentation.

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Ethics approval: Please provide an ethics approval statement with approval/reference number (or a waiver by the ethics committee). Please also provide a patient consent statement or state if the requirement for patient consent was waived by the ethics board.

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 5. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables plus figures:≤ 2. Please check below for further details on tables and figures.

Please note that photographs of patients must be retouched to make the patient unidentifiable and be accompanied by written consent to use the photograph (patient consent forms for Adults and for Minors are available from the HKMJ website).]

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Pictorial Medicine

Template:  Manuscript /  Title page

Pictorial Medicine papers present unique clinical encounters that are best illustrated by photographs, radiographs, or other figures. These papers are not intended as vehicles for case reports. An abridged version with one to two images and a brief description will be published in the print copy of the Journal. The full version of the paper will only be available on the Journal website. The full online version of the Pictorial Medicine paper will also be submitted for listing in the National Library of Medicine.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Not required

Text (excludes references; two versions should be prepared) :

Abridged version : ≤ 150 words; select one to two figure(s) from the full version, and provide a summary of ≤ 150 words. Authors need to be selective when choosing the figure(s), as the abridged version of each paper occupies half a printed page only. References are not needed for the abridged version.

Full version : ≤ 500 words

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Ethics approval: Please provide an ethics approval statement with approval/reference number (or a waiver by the ethics committee). Please also provide a patient consent statement or state if the requirement for patient consent was waived by the ethics board.

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 5 (included in the full online version only). Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables plus figures: ≤ 2 for the abridged print version; ≤ 4 for the online full version. Please check below for further details on tables and figures.

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Editorial

Description: Editorials are invited contributions that complement papers published elsewhere in the journal.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Not required

Text (excludes references) : ≤ 1200 words

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 20. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables and Figures: Allowed only exceptionally

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Commentary

Template:  Manuscript /  Title page

Description: Commentaries relate to issues of current concern. These should focus on an area of controversy or difficulty, whether in diagnosis, treatment, broader aspects of management or conceptualisation. Commentaries are usually solicited by the editors, but unsolicited material will also be considered.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Not required

Text (excludes references) : ≤ 1200 words

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Ethics approval: Please provide an ethics approval statement with approval/reference number (or a waiver by the ethics committee). Please also provide a patient consent statement or state if the requirement for patient consent was waived by the ethics board.

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 20. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables and Figures: Allowed only exceptionally

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Letter to the Editor

Template:  Manuscript /  Title page

Description: Letters discussing a recent article in the HKMJ should be sent within 6 weeks of the article’s publication. Letters that do not refer to a HKMJ article may also be considered.

Manuscript Sections

Abstract: Not required

Text (excludes references): ≤ 250 words

Acknowledgement: Research or project support should be stated here. Only persons who have made substantial contributions but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement.

Funding/support: Funding/support statement should be used to state any funding source/grants (with grant numbers) or other material support for the study. If appropriate, add: "The funder had no role in study design, data collection/analysis/interpretation or manuscript preparation." or “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.”

Ethics approval: Please provide an ethics approval statement with approval/reference number (or a waiver by the ethics committee). Please also provide a patient consent statement or state if the requirement for patient consent was waived by the ethics board.

Conflicts of Interest: Please declare if there are any conflicts of interest in the past 3 years. If there are no conflicts of interest, please add a declaration such as “All authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.” A detailed definition of conflicts of interest is provided by ICMJE (www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/); you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission.

Declaration: If your research has been presented, published, or posted online before, in whole or in part, please add a declaration at the end of your manuscript detailing any prior presentation, and supply copies of relevant material, with explanations, to the editorial office.

Author contributions: The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Please declare (with initials, or say All authors) who contributed to the following items (1) concept or design, (2) acquisition of data, (3) analysis or interpretation of data, (4) drafting of the manuscript, and (5) critical revision for important intellectual content. The following statement should also be included: “All authors had full access to the data, contributed to the study, approved the final version for publication, and take responsibility for its accuracy and integrity.”

References: ≤ 5. Please check below for further details on reference formatting.

Tables plus figures: ≤ 1. Please check below for further details on tables and figures.

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Video Clip

Video clips are invited by the HKMJ Editorial Board. Submitted video clips are published on the HKMJ website, along with the manuscript. All video clips are subject to peer review. The HKMJ will hold the copyright for all video clips published on the HKMJ website, unless otherwise indicated.

Required format of video(s)

(1) mp4 file;

(2) maximum size of 50 MB;

(3) audio (voice over) with video transcript submitted as Supplementary File in .doc or .docx format;

(4) maximum duration of 3 minutes.

Up to three videos per manuscript submission will be accepted. Generally, the video clip should support the description of a technique. Additional data regarding the results of the procedure described should be included in the manuscript.

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Supplementary Material

The supplementary material was provided by the authors and some information may not have been peer reviewed. Accepted supplementary material will be published as submitted by the authors, without any editing or formatting. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine and the Hong Kong Medical Association. The Hong Kong Academy of Medicine and the Hong Kong Medical Association disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content.

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(b) Authorship Information

Authorship Requirements

Authors are responsible for all statements made in their papers. All accepted papers become the permanent property of the HKMJ.

When the HKMJ accepts a paper for publication, authors will be asked to sign statements on (1) authorship responsibility, (2) financial disclosure, and (3) copyright transfer. Each of the statements must be read and signed by all authors (Disclaimer Form).

Authorship Criteria and Responsibilities

The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the roles and responsibilities of authors. Each author must fulfil all of the following: (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) agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Authors will be asked to certify that the manuscript represents valid work and that neither the manuscript nor one with substantially similar content under their authorship has been published or is being considered for publication elsewhere, except as described in an attachment. If requested, authors shall provide the data on which the manuscript is based for examination by the editors or their assignees.

Authors should fully disclose details of all contributors, regardless of their status as authors, and their specific individual contributions and affiliations at manuscript submission.

The number of authors of each paper should not be more than eight; a greater number requires justification. Authors may add a publishable footnote explaining order of authorship.

Corresponding Author

Designate one corresponding author and provide a complete address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address. The HKMJ expects the corresponding author to take responsibility for all communication between the Editorial Office and the other authors.

Group Authorship

If authorship is attributed to a group (either solely or in addition to one or more individual authors), all members of the group must meet the full criteria and requirements for authorship described in the following paragraphs. One or more authors may take responsibility ‘for’ a group, in which case the other group members are not authors, but may be listed in an acknowledgement.

Financial Disclosure

Any affiliation with or involvement in any organisation or entity with a direct financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript (eg, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, expert testimony, grants or patents received/pending, royalties) should be disclosed in an attachment. For the ICMJE definition of conflicts of interest, see www.icmje.org/conflicts-of-interest/; you may briefly state any conflicts of interest, or you may submit the ICMJE form with your submission. Any financial or material support should be identified in a Declaration in the manuscript.

Copyright Transfer

In consideration of the action of the HKMJ in reviewing and editing a submission, the author/s will transfer, assign, or otherwise convey all copyright ownership to the HKMJ in the event that such work is published by the HKMJ.

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(c) Use of Artificial IntelligenceAssisted Technology

The HKMJ follows the ICMJE recommendations (www.icmje.org/recommendations/) for the use of artificial intelligence (AI)–assisted technologies.

At submission, authors should disclose whether AI-assisted technologies (such as large language models, chatbots, or image creators) were used to produce their submitted work. If so, authors should provide a description of the technologies used in both the cover letter and appropriate sections in the manuscript. For instance, authors should report the use of AI-assisted technologies in the Acknowledgement if such use is to assist in editing of the manuscript content, or in Methods if such use is a part of study design or methods, including the tool used, version and prompts if applicable.

The HKMJ does not accept AI and AI-assisted technologies as credited author for they do not fulfil ICMJE authorship criteria.

Authors should carefully review and edit all manuscript content as AI can generate authoritative-sounding output that can be incorrect, incomplete, or biased. The HKMJ does not accept manuscript content (including text, reference citations, tables and figures) generated by AI-assisted technologies.

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(d) Acknowledgement

Research or project support should be stated here. Written permission should be obtained from all persons named in the Acknowledgement. Only persons who have made substantial contributions (eg data collection, writing or editing assistance) but who do not fulfil the authorship criteria should be acknowledged.

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(e) Tables and Figures

Tables

Do not submit tables as photographs. Number tables consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text and supply a brief title for each. Give each column a short or abbreviated heading. Place explanatory matter in footnotes, not in the heading. All non-standard abbreviations used in each table should be defined in the footnotes, in alphabetical order. For footnotes, use the following symbols, in this sequence: *, †, ‡, §, ¶, **, ††, ‡‡. Statistical measures of variations such as standard deviation, standard error of the mean, or confidence interval should be identified in headings. Vertical rules and horizontal rules should be omitted. Ensure that each table is cited in the text.

Figures

We accept the following formats for submission of digital files of images: EPS, TIFF, JPEG (use only the maximum quality compression setting). Resolution of all figures should be at least 350 dpi. Illustrations should be numbered consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text. Titles and detailed explanations should be confined to legends and not included in illustrations. Photomicrographs must have internal scale markers and include magnification and stain used. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the illustrations, each one should be identified and clearly explained in the legend. Explain the internal scale and identify the method of staining in photomicrographs. Photographs of patients must be retouched to make the patient unidentifiable, and be accompanied by written permission to use the photograph (patient consent forms for Adults and for Minors are available).

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(f) References

The HKMJ uses Vancouver style references. All references cited in the text should appear in the reference list; all items in the reference list should be cited in the text. In-text citations should be numbered in the order they appear using superscript Arabic numerals. The reference list should be in numerical order, formatted following ICMJE recommendations as adapted by the NLM (www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html). Abbreviate journal names according to Index Medicus. List all authors up to 6; if more than 6, list the first 3 and then ‘et al.’ Provide a DOI for all references, where available. Provide a date of access for all online resources. References are not permitted in the abstract; in exceptional cases, references in the abstract should be cited in full.

Examples of reference style:

Articles in journals

(i) Standard journal article—

(If a journal carries continuous pagination throughout a volume, the month and issue number are omitted.)

Vega KJ, Pina I, Krevsky B. Heart transplantation is associated with an increased risk for pancreatobiliary disease. Ann Intern Med 1996;124:980-3.

Parkin DM, Clayton D, Black RJ, et al. Childhood leukaemia in Europe after Chernobyl: 5 year follow-up. Br J Cancer 1996;73:1006-12.

(ii) Organisation as author—

The Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand. Clinical exercise stress testing. Safety and performance guidelines. Med J Aust 1996;164:282-4.

(iii) No author given—

Cancer in South Africa [editorial]. S Afr Med J 1994;84:15.

(iv) Article not in English—

Kojima M. Studies on the pathomechanism of solar urticaria [in Japanese]. Areugi 1984;33:224-30.

(v) Issue with supplement—

Payne DK, Sullivan MD, Massie MJ. Women’s psychological reactions to breast cancer. Semin Oncol 1996;23(1 Suppl 2):S89-S97.

(vi) Type of article indicated as needed—

(eg, letter to the Editor, abstract, editorial, commentary)

Enzensberger W, Fischer PA. Metronome in Parkinson’s disease [letter]. Lancet 1996;347:1337.

Clement J, De Bock R. Hematological complications of hantavirus nephropathy (HVN) [abstract]. Kidney Int 1992;42:1285.

Books and other monographs

(vii) Personal author—

Ringsven MK, Bond D. Gerontology and leadership skills for nurses. 2nd ed. Albany (NY): Delmar Publishers; 1996.

(viii) Editor, compiler as author—

Norman IJ, Redfern SJ, editors. Mental health care for elderly people. New York: Churchill Livingstone; 1996.

(ix) Chapter in a book—

Phillips SJ, Whisnant JP. Hypertension and stroke. In: Laragh JH, Brenner BM, editors. Hypertension: pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management. 2nd ed. New York: Raven Press; 1995: 465-78.

(x) Conference proceedings—

Kimura J, Shibasaki H, editors. Recent advances in clinical neurophysiology. Proceedings of the 10th International Congress of EMG and Clinical Neurophysiology; 1995 Oct 15-19; Kyoto, Japan. Amsterdam: Elsevier; 1996.

(xi) Conference paper—

Bengtsson S, Solheim BG. Enforcement of data protection, privacy and security in medical informatics. In: Lun KC, Degoulet P, Piemme TE, Rienhoff O, editors. MEDINFO 92. Proceedings of the 7th World Congress on Medical Informatics; 1992 Sep 6-10; Geneva, Switzerland. Amsterdam: North-Holland; 1992: 1561-5.

(xii) Dissertation—

Kaplan SJ. Post-hospital home health care: the elderly’s access and utilization [dissertation]. St Louis (MO): Washington University; 1995.

(xiii) Scientific or technical report—

Smith P, Golladay K. Payment for durable medical equipment billed during skilled nursing facility stays. Final report. Dallas (TX): Department of Health and Human Services (US), Office of Evaluation and Inspections; 1994 Oct. Report No.: HHSIGOEI69200860.

Other published material

(xiv) Newspaper article—

Lee G. Hospitalizations tied to ozone pollution: study estimates 50,000 admissions annually. The Washington Post 1996 Jun 21; Sect. A:3 (col. 5).

(xv) Magazine article—

Roueche B. Annals of medicine: the Santa Claus culture. The New Yorker 1971 Sep 4: 66-81.

(xvi) Legal material—

Increased Drug Abuse: the Impact on the Nation’s Emergency Rooms: Hearings Before the Subcomm. on Human Resources and Intergovernmental Relations of the House Comm. on Government Operations, 103rd Cong., 1st Sess. (May 26, 1993).

Personal communications and unpublished data/material

(xvii) Personal communications—

The majority of the victims are children (personal communication).

Note: This may only be used in exceptional circumstances, and if written consent from the person being quoted is provided.

(xviii) In press—

Leshner AI. Molecular mechanisms of cocaine addiction. N Engl J Med. In press.

Note: A reference to unpublished work that has not yet been accepted for publication should not appear in the reference list but should be cited in the text as unpublished data or written communication and dated. Work that has been accepted, but has not yet been published, may be cited in the references as above (please enclose a copy of the acceptance letter).

Electronic material

(xix) Websites and webpages—

The Western Governors’ Association Telemedicine Action Report 1996. Available from: www.telemed.org/TIEtexthome.html. Accessed 5 May 2002.

Note: Only websites or webpages containing specific references should be cited in the references as above. Websites and homepages of organisations should be cited in the text.

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(g) Journal Style

Language and spelling

All papers should be written in English, using British spellings (eg, anaemia, tumour, cauterise) and conforming to the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English Usage.

Abbreviations

Do not use abbreviations in the title or abstract and limit their use in the text. Abbreviations should not be used at the beginning of a sentence. Standard abbreviations may be used and should be defined on first mention in the text unless they are the standard units of measurement. In general, terms should not be abbreviated unless they are used repeatedly and the abbreviation is helpful to the reader.

Numbers

Use Arabic numerals for numbers above nine, for designators (eg case 5, day 2, etc) and for units of measure; numbers lower than 10 should be spelled out, at the beginning of sentences, and for fractions below one.

Units

Use Système International (SI) measurements only, except when ‘Dual report’ is indicated in the SI unit conversion table.

Drug names

Use generic names of drugs, unless the specific trade name of a drug used is directly relevant to the discussion. When generic names are not available, brand names can be used and should have an initial capital, with manufacturer’s name and city/country of the manufacture shown.

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3. Editorial Policies

(a) Duplicate Submission / Redundant Publication / Plagiarism

Manuscripts are considered on the understanding that they are submitted solely to the HKMJ and have not been published elsewhere previously either in print or electronic format, and are not under consideration by another publication or electronic medium.

Redundant publication is publication of a paper that overlaps substantially with one already published. When submitting a paper, authors should make a full statement to the Editor-in-Chief about all submissions and previous reports that might be regarded as a redundant publication of the same or similar work. In case of doubt, submit copies of material that have been previously published or are currently being considered elsewhere at the time of manuscript submission. If redundant publication is attempted without such notification, authors should expect editorial action to be taken; at the least, rejection of the manuscript.

Plagiarism is direct copying of text from a previously published source, without permission or proper acknowledgement. All submitted articles are checked with duplication-checking software before being sent for review. Articles found to have significant plagiarism, including self-plagiarism (copying from one’s own previous works), will be returned to the authors; the journal reserves the right to take further action in severe cases. The corresponding author is responsible for obtaining written permission to use any copyrighted text or illustrations. Permission is required irrespective of authorship or publisher, except for documents in the public domain.

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(b) Copyright / Permissions

Submission of an article for publication implies the transfer of the copyright from the authors to the HKMJ upon acceptance.

Material published in the HKMJ and on its website (www.hkmj.org) is covered by copyright.

Articles submitted to the HKMJ are published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0; creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Readers may reproduce or store copies of HKMJ articles provided that the articles are used only for non-commercial use. Any uses and or copies of material published under this licence, in whole or in part, must include appropriate accreditation (the customary bibliographic citation, including author attribution, date, article title, Hong Kong Medical Journal, and/or a link to the article on the HKMJ website; www.hkmj.org) and MUST include a link to the license (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Users may not use the material for commercial purposes. Any derivative works produced based on the copyrighted materials may not be distributed.

Authors who reuse their material as described above do not need to contact the HKMJ for permission. For other uses, authors must request permission from the Managing Editor as detailed below.

Copyright release is required for commercial use. Permission enquiries should be addressed to the Managing Editor directly. The request forms for Copyright Release and Reproduction Licence are available for download.

The HKMJ encourages and permits links to www.hkmj.org. The linking should not suggest that the HKMJ promotes or endorses any causes, ideas, web sites, products or services. No content from www.hkmj.org may be used for commercial purposes nor for purposes that are in any way unlawful or harmful to any other person or entity. We reserve the right to withdraw permission for any link.

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(c) Ethics

Ethics approval

For studies involving humans, including data and/or tissue samples, a statement should be included declaring that the study obtained ethics approval, with the name of the ethics committee(s) or institutional review board(s) and the number/ID of the approval(s). It should also be stated that either (1) the participants (or a parent/guardian) gave informed consent before the study, or (2) the requirement for informed consent was waived by an ethics committee / institutional review board.

Clinical trial registry

Prospective human clinical trials must have been preregistered in a clinical trial database. For these articles, the registration number and database name should be included in the manuscript.

Animal studies

For studies involving animals, a statement should be included declaring that the study obtained ethics approval, with the name of the relevant ethics committee(s) and the number/ID of the approval(s).

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(d) Embargo

Authors should refrain from contacting the mass media about papers that are being peer reviewed or in press. Authors should discuss any possible prepublication disclosure with the Editors in advance and obtain their agreement.

Providing copies of manuscripts or detailed information to media, manufacturers, or other parties of information described in a manuscript that has been accepted but not yet published violates the embargo policy of the HKMJ. The Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to withdraw an article from publication if it is given media coverage at any stage of the review/publication process.

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4. Submitting a Paper

(a) Online Submission (HKAMedTrack)

All articles must be submitted through ‘HKAMedTrack’, our online submission system. Authors must register before submitting a manuscript. An author may login for submission if he/she already has an account in our system.

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(b) Editorial Review and Processing Peer Review

Peer Review Process

All submitted manuscripts are initially reviewed internally. Those manuscripts that do not comply with the Guide for Authors, or those that are of insufficient priority for publication, are rejected. The remaining manuscripts are sent for external peer review (except editorials and letters to the Editor which are reviewed internally). The HKMJ operates a double-blind peer-review process. Peer reviewer and author identities are kept confidential. Reviewers are required to disclose any conflicts of interest. Reviewers are invited by emails and they can conduct online review via the HKAMedTrack system. All papers are reviewed by two independent reviewers; two to three weeks are usually allowed. Authors should not recommend the names of any reviewers, but may give the names of people whom they wish not to act as reviewers at the beginning of the manuscript file. Any authors, or people acknowledged as contributors, who are on the editorial board of the journal will not be allowed to participate in the peer review process, and an explanatory note will be added in accepted papers.

Reviewers

Reviewers are asked to make comments on the scientific content and style of the paper, to make statistical and methodological appraisals, and to comment on the appropriateness of the discussion and conclusions.

For reviewers who seek help from others in conducting the review, they should acknowledge these individuals in the written comments to the editor. Reviewers must uphold the confidentiality of the manuscript; uploading the manuscript to software or other artificial intelligence (AI) technologies that cannot guarantee confidentiality should be avoided. Reviewers should inform the editor if and how AI technology was utilised to facilitate their review. Reviewers should be aware that AI can generate authoritative-sounding output which can be incorrect, incomplete, or biased.

Invited Reviewers are encouraged to refer to our Step-by-step Guide to Reviewing with HKMJ.

Revisions

Manuscripts that require revision are returned to authors, and two to three weeks are usually given for re-submissions; a request for a revision does not indicate that the manuscript will be accepted. When preparing a revision, authors should respond to each point raised by each reviewer, and indicate where appropriate changes were made in the text. All revisions are approved by all authors.

Statistical Review

When appropriate, a manuscript will be reviewed by the journal's statistical advisor to specifically appraise the statistical content. The HKMJ reserves the right to send a paper for a further round of peer review if necessary. The final decision rests with the Editor-in-Chief.

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(c) Rejected Manuscripts

Authors of rejected manuscripts will be notified by emails or authors can check the updated status of their manuscripts via the HKAMedTrack system.

Manuscripts requiring revisions must be returned to the Editorial Office by the deadline. If manuscripts are not returned after repeated reminders, they will be treated as being withdrawn by the authors and subsequent return may be rejected or treated as new submissions, at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief.

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(d) Appeals

If authors wish to appeal a decision, they can click "Appeal" button for their respective papers. Authors will then be prompted to provide the reasons for appeal, and state how the manuscript could be revised or clarified to address key problems mentioned by editors / reviewers. Authors can also upload the amended file at the time of rebuttal, or they can make the revision later after getting Editorial Board's reply.

If the Editorial Board, on reading the rebuttal letter, considers that the appeal is warranted, authors will be invited to submit a revised manuscript (if they did not do so before) that will be entered into the peer review process again.

Please note that invitation to submit a revised version after appealing is not a guarantee of acceptance. The article will enter the peer review process again.

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(e) Editing

The vast majority of HKMJ readers are non-native English speakers. To ensure that all manuscripts are clear and concise for our readers, all accepted manuscripts undergo technical and copy-editing according to HKMJ style. Edited manuscripts are sent to the authors for checking and final approval prior to publication as a galley proof and page proof. A few days are usually given to authors to proofread their papers, answer any queries, and make any changes. Only minimal changes will be allowed; substantial changes will be charged for, and the addition of new material may require another round of peer review. Authors are responsible for all statements made in their work, including changes made by the copy editor and authorised by the corresponding author.

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(f) Reprints

Reprints may be purchased in lots of 50. Order forms and price quotations are sent to the corresponding author with the page proofs. Orders submitted after the issue is printed are subject to considerably higher prices; please contact the journal for a quotation.

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(g) Costs to Authors

There are no submission or page charges for publication in the HKMJ. However, the journal may charge for the following author requests:

(1) colour printing; HK$1500/colour photo or figure, or

(2) substantial alterations or excess figures/tables added after acceptance of the manuscript; HK$325/layout page.

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