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Preparing Scientific Manuscript (and Getting it Accepted)

This article provides guidance on preparing and submitting a scientific manuscript, including selecting the right format and journal, analyzing data, and avoiding common mistakes. It also emphasizes the importance of thorough literature search and adherence to reporting guidelines.

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Preparing Scientific Manuscript (and Getting it Accepted)

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  1. PREPARING SCIENTIFIC MANUSCRIPT (AND GETTING IT ACCEPTED)Marko TurinaUniversity of ZurichSwitzerland Some material provided by Ian Beecroft Publishing (IB)

  2. http://www.ianbeecroftconsulting.com/

  3. A. Fundamental questions What do you have to say? Is it worth saying? What is the right format? What is the audience? What is the right journal?

  4. You have some interesting data and want to publish them: say 300 aortic valve replacements in poor LV function without mortality (?) First, check you data carefully: are your results really true? Are your mortalities assessed according to current guidelines (every editor will ask you this question, unless you stated it in text): Guidelines for reporting mortality and morbidity after cardiac valve interventions. Cary W. Akins, D. Craig Miller, Marko I. Turina, Nicholas T. Kouchoukos, Eugene H. Blackstone, Gary L. Grunkemeier, Johanna J.M. Takkenberg, Tirone E. David, Eric G. Butchart, David H. Adams, David M. Shahian, Siegfried Hagl, John E. Mayer, and Bruce W. LytleJ. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg., Apr 2008; 135: 732 - 738.

  5. Today, there are no excuses for missing important information in the published literature Thorough search of literature is essential before preparing a scientific publication (no sense in reinventing the wheel): CTSNet journals HighWire Press Medline Ovid Pubmed

  6. You have collected the data and would like to write a manuscript: how to proceed? First, analyze your data carefully: the essence of science is the analysis. Do not simply unload your data into tables and figures, add text, and send it somewhere. “Observations are useless until they have been interpreted. The analysis of experimental data forms a critical stage in every scientific inquiry – a stage which has been responsible for most of the foolishness and fallacies of the past” E. Bright Wilson, An Introduction to Scientific Research.

  7. Remember questions which every editor asks when he receives a new clinical manuscript Is it a consecutive series of patients (operations, treatments, etc.)? Are all patients with a particular condition included, or were patients selected for the described procedure? Specify selection criteria (i.e. which patients were excluded or included). Have these question in mind when preparing a manuscript!

  8. Start your work by carefully reading instructions for manuscript submission

  9. EJCTS instructions for manuscript submission

  10. EJCTS instructions for manuscript submission

  11. Try to avoid abbreviations: they make your manuscript difficult to read, and are usually unnecessary ”Cardioplegia (C) is a type of ischemia-reperfusion injury (IR), usually it is connected with hypothermia (H). IR causes myocardial stunning (MS). MS occurring after IR has been extenisively investigated, both the metabolic consequences (MC), the gene programs (GP) activated, the ione shifts (IS) occurring, etc. ” “The role of MC, GP, and IS in C-induced IR is not fully known, neither are the exact cellular events of MS. HCA is important to protect the heart” After Jarle Vaage, Prague 2008

  12. A word of caution about dictate of statistics in today's literature.

  13. Do not be misled by statistical associations: they can be completely erroneous

  14. Beware of multiple subgroup analysis!! Courtesy of Pieter Kappetein, EACTS

  15. Circulation 1980; 61(3):508-15

  16. Simple rules which you should remember when attacking your data with a massive statistical effort. (“Torture the data until they confess….”). Statistical end result (p value, Χ2) shows only the degree of association; it says nothing whatsoever about causal relationship. Beware of “Post hoc, propter hoc” logic: temporal relationship of two variables (one occurring after the other) does not mean that it is a “cause and effect” relation. With large hospital data banks now required by law in many countries, “data mining” can deliver some significant results, but results are only valid if a previously determined hypothesis is being evaluated.

  17. Watch your numbers when writing manuscript! From a recently submitted manuscript (it was rejected)

  18. Check your English when writing manuscript! What is “idoneous”? Explanation: Latin for “suitable” For authors who are not native English speakers, it is a good practice to elicit help from expert translator/assistant

  19. Check your English when writing manuscript! Avoid strange abbreviations!

  20. In statistics, use numbers which were actually measured, not calculation-derived artifacts. This error is surprisingly common in many submissions. Do not write: • Cardiac output was 5.389 ± 0.439 L/min • Blood pressure increased from 138.916 ± 31.937 … • Positive effect was observed in 55.6 % of patients … • Avoid percentages in small numbers (< 30) Instead, use: • Cardiac output was 5.4 ± 0.4 L/min • Blood pressure increased from 139 ± 32 ….. • Positive effect was observed in 5/9 patients. After Jarle Vaage, Prague 2008

  21. Refrain from statistical tricks: shown are same results, with SEM on the left, with 95 % confidence limits on the right. mean ± SEM mean ± 95% confidence intervals After Jarle Vaage, Prague 2008

  22. When dealing with small numer of observations, use scatter plots and median values After Jarle Vaage, Prague 2008

  23. Beware of two deadly sins in scientific publishing:Plagiarism Redundant (duplicate) publication

  24. Simple plagiarism check with Google Scholar from a recent publication

  25. Simple plagiarism check with Google Scholar: Quick results

  26. In US, plagiarism is a punishable offense, with a governmental agency supervising research, and taking administrative actions.

  27. Beware of two deadly sins in scientific publishing: PlagiarismRedundant (duplicate) publication

  28. All 6 conditions must be met to declare a publication as a duplicate one.

  29. Another bad practice is “Salami publishing” or “Parma manuscripts” (thinly sliced material) Your data should be submitted fully; do not try to send a part of it to one journal and the other part to another one. Editors talk to each other, and they meet often; so this action will be detected, and will give you a black eye as author. This particular practice is often used to inflate author’s publication list; but it is detested by editors because it burdens journals with similar material.

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