About the Journal

FOCUS AND SCOPE

It is the policy of the Pakistan Journal of Pathology (PJP) to publish articles pertaining to Pathology providing sufficient contribution to medical knowledge. The journal is presently being published quarterly. The articles may include, original research, review articles, case reports, retrospective analysis of data, and new experimental methods of medical importance. PJP is a peer-reviewed journal that considers articles on all aspects of histopathology, hematology, chemical pathology, microbiology, virology, and immunology. It is journal policy to publish work deemed by peer reviewers to be a coherent and sound addition to scientific knowledge.

PEER REVIEW PROCESS

Peer review is the critical assessment of manuscripts submitted to journals by experts who are not part of the editorial staff. Peer review can, therefore, be viewed as an important extension of the scientific process. It is the policy of PJP that every article received for the publication is peer-reviewed by at least two senior specialists of the concerned specialty. The "double-blind" process is strictly followed. PJP operates an 'open peer review' policy meaning reviewers are asked to sign their reviews. In certain controversial cases, the opinion of a 3rd reviewer is also obtained. In case of conflict of opinion between the two reviewers, the matter is referred to the Chief-editor.

COPYRIGHT STATEMENT

Any article submitted to Pak J Pathol must not be previously submitted to any other journal and must not be published in part or total. The authors will be requested to sign an agreement to give copyright to the publishers. The authors will also be requested to assist the editors in final proof reading of their articles before publication.

  • On submitting article to Pak J Pathol we agree that all copyright ownership is transferred to the Pak J Pathol even the article can be declined after the acceptance as per decision of the Editorial Board.
  • All the content available on Pak J Pathol website is the property of Pak J Pathol if created by Pak J Pathol, or of the person or entity who or which owned it prior to submission to Pak J Pathol. 

PLAGIARISM AND DATA FABRICATION 

Plagiarism is not acceptable in Pakistan Journal Pathology. Plagiarism includes copying text, ideas, images, or data from another source, even from own publications, without giving credit to the original source.

If plagiarism is detected during the initial editorial triage, the manuscript may be rejected.
It is the policy of editorial committee of Pak J Pathol to blacklist any author found to be guilty of plagiarism. The name of author(s) committing plagiarism will also be disseminated to editors of other medical journals, PMC and HEC. Data presented must be original and not inappropriately selected, manipulated, enhanced, or fabricated. This includes

1)         Exclusion of data points to enhance significance of conclusions,

2)         Fabrication of data

3)         Selection of results that support a particular conclusion at the expense of contradictory data,

4)         Deliberate selection of analysis tools or methods to support a particular conclusion.

AUTHORSHIP

Submission of a manuscript to a PJP implies that all authors have read and agreed to its content and that the manuscript conforms to the journals policies. Only six authors are allowed in a single institution / single discipline study.  In a multi-institution / multi-disciplinary and international collaboration research, Editorial Board shall guide on an individual case basis. Each author is expected to have made substantial contributions to the conception OR design of the work; OR the acquisition, analysis, OR interpretation of data; OR the creation of new software used in the work; OR have drafted the work or substantively revised it. Contributors who do not meet the above criteria for authorship, but helped in the study, may be listed in the acknowledgment section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help or writing assistance, or a department chair who provided only general support.

When submitting a manuscript to the PJP, the corresponding author takes responsibility on behalf of all authors for the authorship, authenticity, and integrity of the research being reported. The corresponding author should be available throughout the submission and peer review process to respond to editorial queries in a timely way, and should be available after publication to respond to critiques of the work and cooperate with any requests from the journal for data or additional information should questions about the paper arise after publication.

A current and functional email address needs to be provided for each author at submission. Authors added at revision also need an email address provided in the system. Any change made to the list of authors (addition, removal, change in order) after manuscript acceptance requires consent of all authors and editorial approval.

Statements describing detailed contributions made by each author are required at the time of submission of the manuscript.

CLINICAL TRIAL

PJP considers the publication of results of all randomized control trials (RCT) if the ICMJE recommendations are followed (http://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf). A registration number will have to be provided with the manuscript and should be noted after the end of the abstract. The ICMJE uses the World Health Organization (WHO) definition of a clinical trial, which is "any research study that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes". This definition includes phase I to IV trials. The ICMJE defines health-related interventions as "any intervention used to modify a biomedical or health-related outcome" and health-related outcomes as "any biomedical or health-related measures obtained in patients or participants". Authors who are unsure whether their trial needs registering should consult the ICMJE FAQs for further information. (www.who.int/ictrp/network/primary/en/index.html).

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) also provides approval and trial numbers for clinical trials involving drugs or appliances (http://www.dra.gov.pk/)

ANIMAL-OR PLANT-BASED STUDIES

Animal-or plant-based studies, or research will not be considered for processing or publication in the PJP.

MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION GUIDELINES FOR AUTHORS

Pakistan Journal of Pathology (PJP) is the official journal of Pakistan association of Pathologists. Acceptance criteria for all research papers and review articles are based on the quality and originality of the research and its clinical and scientific significance to our readership.

 

Undertaking

The undertaking must be signed by all authors and must contain following statements

  • The material submitted for publication is, original and has not been submitted for publication
  • Co-authors qualify authorship and share the responsibility of contents in manuscript.
  • The research has been approved by ethical committee, and there is no conflict of interest.

 ARTICLE CATEGORIES

The following types of manuscripts are accepted at PJP.

1.     Original article

Format requirements are;

A.    Title page

The title page of the manuscript should include:

1)        Title: Should be concise and self-descriptive.

2)        Authors: First, middle and last name of each author in sequence of authorship merit.

3)        Affiliation for each author, with the name of department and institution.

4)        Corresponding address, cell number, and e mail address of any of first three authors.

5)        A short running head or foot line of no more than 40 characters

B.          Abstract: Abstract should not be of more than 250 words, it must be structured in headings as objective, material and methods, results and conclusion. Also include 3-5 key words relating to the article subject as abbreviated in the Index -Medicus.

C.          Material and Methods: Describe the type, duration and place of study. Summarize the demographic data of the subjects. Provide brief descriptions for methods along-with references. Identify all drugs and chemicals used, including generic name, dose and route of administration. Reports of randomized clinical trials should present information on all major study elements and protocols. Describe statistical methods used and specify computer program employed for this purpose.

D.          Results: Present results in logical sequence in the text, tables, and illustrations. Do not repeat text data in the tables or illustrations.

E.         Discussion: Justify result findings sequentially one by one. While justifying the findings, cite references that support or negate the findings of your study in a logical way. Compare your findings with other similar studies carried out locally and internationally. In this section limitation of study, recommendations, and conclusions drawn must be clearly mentioned.

F.         References: References should be cited in consecutive numerical order at first mentioned in the text and designated by the reference number in parenthesis. The references must be written in Vancouver style. A few examples are given below:

1)        For journal articles, list the first six authors only and add, et al. for the others. For example:  Guilarde AO, Turchi MD, Siqueira JBJr, Mochan DP, Tersi NL, Mouchan L, et al. Dengue hemorrhagic fever in adults: clinical outcome related to the serotypes. J Infect Dis. 2012; 197: 817-24.

(2)        For books and book chapters, follow as: DeGroot IJ. Evaluation of adrenal function and adrenal disease. In: DeGroot L, Stanbury J B, eds. The thyroid and its diseases. 5th ed. New York: Wiley, 1985, pp 199-258.

(3)        Publications in press follow as:  Benner AI. Molecular mechanisms of alcohol in addiction. N Engl J Med. In press 1999.

(4)        Journal article in electronic form, follow as: Cosby AI. Factors in the - emergence of communicable diseases. Emerg Infect Dis [serial online] 1995 Jan-Mar [cited 2000 July 5], Computerized Educational Systems, 2000.

  (5)        Monograph in electronic form, follow asCDI, clinical dermatology illustrated [monographs on CD-ROM] Reeves JRT, Maibach H. CMEA Multimedia group, producers 2nd ed. Version 2.0. San Diego: CMEA, 1995.

  (6)        Conference proceedings follow as: Kimura J, Shibasaki H, editors. Recent  advances in clinical neurophysiology. Proceedings of the 10th International Congress  of EKG and Clinical Neurophysiology, 2000 Oct 19-25, Kyoto, Japan. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1996.

(7)        Dissertation, follow as: Webster SJ. Post-hospital general health care the elderly's access and utilization [Thesis]. St. Louis (MO): Washington Univ., 1995.

(8)        Volume with supplement, follow as: Lolti HM, Chong AR. Risk assessment of Codmium carcinogenicity and occupational skin cancer. Global Health Perspect, 1999; 102 Suppl 1:274-94.

G.          Tables

Type each table double-spaced on a separate page. Tables should be self-explanatory and should supplement, not duplicate the text. Each table must be cited in consecutive numerical order in the text.

H.      Illustrations and legends

Illustrations should clarify and augment the text. Submit two complete sets of glossy  illustrations. No hand drawn art will be accepted. Each illustration must be numbered and cited in consecutive order in the text. Legends for illustrations should be concise and should not repeat the text. Legends should be typed double-spaced. Each figure should be cited in consecutive numerical order in the text. Give the figures a number following the word Figure. Use letters to designate parts of illustrations (e.g, A, B, C) and describe each part clearly in the legend. Any letter designations or arrows appearing on the illustration should be identified and described fully.

I.          Letter from Institutional Review Board / Ethical Review Committee 

Authors are required to send letter from Institutional Review Board / Ethical Review  Committee along with Original articles and Case reports.

J.          Permission Letter from Med Dte GHQ (Only for Army Serving Doctors)

Med Dte GHQ permission letter is mandatory for all army serving doctors at the time of article/ case / report submission.

K.          Processing / Publication Fee

The processing fee of Rs. 3000/- (non-refundable) is to be paid at the time of submission of the article through demand/bank draft payable in the favor of Commandant AFIP account. It is further intimated that authors` will have to pay Rs. 5,000/- as publication charges/ fee, if the article is accepted for publication. The publication charges for case report and short communication will be half of the  above charges. Research Protocol will be published with the same publication charges as that of case report. (Payable before issuance of acceptance letter).

L.           Journal Subscription Fee

>    Single Issue: Rs. 500/-

Annual Subscription Rs. 2000/-

2.          Review Articles

A review article should consist of critical overview/analysis of a topic of interest providing the background and recent developments with reference to original literature. It should not exceed 4000 words with maximum 50 references and should have an abstract of no more than 250 words with 3 to  6 key words.

3.           Case Reports

PJP accepts academic and unusual reports of clinical cases. Case reports should not exceed 1800 words with 10 -15 references and maximum five tables / figures / photomicrographs. Case reports should be prepare in accordance to the CARE checklist (https://www.care-statement.org/resources/checklist) and attach the filled checklist with case reports.

4.           Case Series

A group or series of case reports involving patients who were given similar treatment. Reports of case series usually contain detailed information about the individual patients. This includes demographic information (for example, age, gender, ethnic origin) and information on diagnosis, treatment, response to treatment, and follow-up after treatment.

5.           Short Communication/ Short Report

These are written communications in which a manuscript explains the study done on the small number of populations with restricted outcome and setting. Similar to short communication short reports are brief reports in which a manuscript explains the study done on the small number of populations with restricted outcomes and settings. Short communication should be complete work, not merely a preliminary report. It should not exceed more than 2000 words with maximum two figures / tables with an abstract of no more than 200 words and 12-15 references

6.           Letters to the Editor

A letter sent to the editor to address an area of concern or reporting early results of a new research.

PRIVACY STATEMENT

The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party

ETHICAL APPROVAL OF RESEARCH

Research involving human subjects, human material, or human data, must have been performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and must have been approved by an appropriate ethics committee. A statement detailing this, including the name of the ethics committee and the reference number where appropriate, must appear in all manuscripts reporting such research. If a study has been granted an exemption from requiring ethics approval, this should also be detailed in the manuscript (including the name of the ethics committee that granted the exemption). Further information and documentation to support this should be made available to the Editor on request. Manuscripts may be rejected if the Editor considers that the research has not been carried out within an appropriate ethical framework. In rare cases, the Editor may contact the ethics committee for further information.

LICENSE TERMS

The Pakistan Journal Pathology follows "CC BY NC" creative commons licensing. 

PUBLICATION TIMELINES

Pak J Pathol is a quarterly medical journal. Timelines for print and online publications are as under:-

Issue No

Month

Date

1

January - March

31st March

2

April - June

30th June

3

July - September

30th September

4

October - December

31st December