Instructions For Authors
Photomedicine and Laser Surgery provides rapid publication of new and cutting-edge techniques and research in phototherapy, low level laser therapy (LLLT), and laser medicine and surgery.
Book reviews are published as space permits.
Manuscripts must be submitted online using the following URL: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/photomedicine
Manuscript Submission and Copyright Agreement Form
The Copyright Agreement form (available from web site at transfer_of_copyright.pdf) should be submitted once your paper has been accepted for publication. Manuscripts cannot be published without this form. The corresponding author is responsible for obtaining signatures of coauthors. Authors not permitted to release copyright must still return the form signed under the statement of the reason for not releasing the copyright. Upon acceptance of your paper, please fax the Copyright Agreement form to 914-740-2108.
Preparation of Manuscript
Prepare manuscripts double spaced throughout. Leave ample margins on the sides, top, and bottom of the page. Please submit text of manuscripts in Microsoft Word. The title page should include the authors’ names and affiliations, the source of a work or study (if any), and a running title of about 45 characters. We require the full mailing address and contact information (telephone, fax and e-mail address) for EACH author listed on the paper. Please include the address(es) either on the title page or on a separate sheet. Please also indicate the corresponding author. The second page should consist of a structured abstract of not more than 250 words which should be self-explanatory without reference to the text. The papers should follow this format: abstract, introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, conclusion and summary, and references. Number pages consecutively. At the end of the paper, give the name and address of the individual to whom reprint requests should be directed. Authors are encouraged to suggest the names of appropriate reviewers.
The structured format for the abstract consists of 1) the objective of one or two sentences; 2) the background data is a short paragraph describing the present status of the field; 3) methods is a statement of the plan and/or methods used in the study; 4) the results is a concise summary of the essential features verified by the data; and 5) the conclusions is a brief description of the objective findings of the study. References are not permitted in the abstract.
Guidelines on Length. Manuscript length varies according to the type of paper, subject matter and authors’ judgment. Original research papers would normally be less than 3000 words; review papers may exceptionally be longer (up to 5000 words and should have a 150-word summary); case studies would normally be less than 2000 words; short reports should be less than 1000 words with no more than one table or illustration and up to ten references. We are happy to entertain unsolicited editorials of up to 1000 words, which will be externally peer reviewed. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 500 words with no more than 5 references except in exceptional circumstances when the argument for this should be laid out in an accompanying letter. One table or illustration may accompany letters. Personal view papers, drug/therapy/intervention reports, critical review and debate and reports drawing attention to potential clinical problems will be welcomed.
Please follow the requested style to avoid any delays in publication. Consult a current issue of the journal for the exact format.
We endorse the “Uniform Requirements of Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals.”
Tables
Tables should be submitted in Microsoft Word and embedded in the manuscript in position relative to text. Tables should be cited in the text in order and identified as Table 1, Table 2, etc. Along with the table number each table should have a title.
Figures
Please follow the following caveats when submitting illustrations:
- Do not embed figures in the Microsoft Word text files.
- Do not prepare any figures in Microsoft Word.
- Prepare figures in either tiff or eps format.
- Line illustrations must be submitted at 1200 DPI.
- Black and white halftones and color art must be submitted at 300 DPI.
- Avoid using PowerPoint files.
- Color art must be saved as CMYK-not RGB.
Please name your artwork files with the submitting author’s name, e.g., Smith Fig. 1. tif.
In order to expedite your submission as quickly and efficiently as possible, we ask that all artwork be checked using Digital Expert before submitting. This is a free tool that will ensure that you prepare and submit quality digital materials suitable for print.
Go to http://www.sheridan.com/ to check your image files. You will be given directions about how to correct any files that are not considered acceptable.
If photographs of patients are used, either the subjects should not be identifiable or their pictures must be accompanied by written permission to use the figure. Legends for illustrations should be typewritten (double spaced) on a separate sheet with numbers corresponding to the figures.
Abbreviations
Abbreviations of journal titles should follow the style of Medline or the Council of Biology Editors Style Manual (Arlington, VA, American Institute of Biological Sciences). The first time an uncommon abbreviation appears, it should be preceded by the full name for which it stands.
References
References must be typed double spaced and numbered consecutively as they appear. Those appearing for the first time in tables and figures must be numbered in sequence with those cited in the text where the table or figure is mentioned. List all the authors when there are six or fewer. When there are seven or more, list the first three, then “et al.” Sample references are:
- Lahita, R., Liuger, J., Drayer, D.E., Koffler, D., and Reidenberg, M.M. (1982). Antibodies to nuclear antigens in patients treated with procainamide. J. Cardiovasc. Ultrason. 1, 12-20.
- Bearns, A.G. (1972). Wilson’s disease, in: The Metabolic Basis of Inherited Disease. J.B. Stanbury, J.B. Wynnegaarden, and D.S. Frederickson (eds.). New York: McGraw-Hill, pp. 1033-1050.
References to government publications should include the department, bureau or office, title, location of publisher, publisher, year, pages cited, and most important, the publication series, report, or monograph number.
Numbered references to personal communications, unpublished data and manuscripts either “in preparation” or “submitted for publications” are unacceptable. If essential, such material may be incorporated in the appropriate place in the text.
Permissions
Materials taken from other sources must be accompanied by a written statement from both author and publisher giving permission for reproduction. If clearances are required by the author’s institution, statements concerning such clearance should be provided in the manuscript. Obtain and submit written permission from authors to cite unpublished data or papers still in press.
Reprints
Reprints may be ordered by using the special reprint order form that will accompany the proofs. Reprints ordered after the issue is printed will be charged at a higher rate.
Publisher
Photomedicine and Laser Surgery is published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., 140 Huguenot Street, 3rd Floor, New Rochelle, NY 10801-5215, Telephone: (914) 740-2100; fax: (914) 740-2108.
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