Instructions to Authors

Scope and Policy

ARQUIVOS BRASILEIROS DE OFTALMOLOGIA (ABO; 1678-2925–online version) is the official bimonthly publication of the Brazilian Council of Ophthalmology (Conselho Brasileiro de Oftalmologia –CBO). The journal aims to publish scientific studies in ophthalmology, visual sciences, and public health, encouraging research, qualification, and updating of the professionals in this field.

ABO is licensed by Creative Commons (CC BY) International attribution 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

The journal adopts the iThenticate system to identify plagiarism. Cases of misconduct in publication will be judged according to the criteria and recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE; http://publicationethics.org).

To maintain a single-blinded evaluation policy, the journal does not publish articles that have already been deposited in preprint repositories. All manuscripts submitted and coming from preprint repositories will be peer-reviewed and will receive the definitive DOI issued by ABO.

Although ABO supports open science communication practices, it still uses its current blinded peer-review model and does not require depositing of research data in repositories.

ABO is an open-access journal and does not charge submission, review, translation, and publication of articles.

Methods

Only original manuscripts written in English are accepted. Manuscripts are categorized into the following types based on the methodology used:

Clinical studies

Descriptive or analytical studies involving humans or evaluating the literature relevant to humans.

Epidemiological studies

Analytical studies involving results from human populations.

Laboratory experimental studies

Descriptive or analytical studies involving animal models or other biological, physical, or chemical techniques.

Theoretical studies

Descriptive studies involving the description and theoretical analysis of new hypotheses based on the knowledge available in the literature. Theoretical results must add new information to the literature.

Types of Manuscripts

Manuscripts submitted to ABO should fit into one of the aforementioned categories according to their format. The maximum number of words, figures, tables, and, references for each type of manuscript are provided in parentheses at the end of the description for each type. The word count of the manuscript includes the text from the beginning of the introduction up to the end of the discussion. Therefore, the following items are not included in the word count: title page, abstract, references, acknowledgments, tables, figures, and legends.

Editorials

Editorials are contributed by invitation and should be related to topics of current interest, preferentially related to articles published in the same issue of ABO (title, maximum of 1,000 words, 2 figures or tables, and 10 references).

Original articles

Original articles present complete experiments with results that have never been published before (title, structured abstract, maximum of 3,000 words, 8 figures or tables, and 30 references). The evaluation of the manuscripts is based on the following priorities:

  1. New and relevant information based on a study that uses appropriate methodology.
  2. Repetition of information available in the literature, not previously confirmed locally, based on a study that uses appropriate methodology.
  3. Repetition of information available in the literature and previously confirmed locally, based on a study that uses appropriate methodology.

* Manuscripts that contain speculative conclusions unsubstantiated by the results or are based on a study with inappropriate methodology will not be accepted.

Case reports and Case series

Case reports or case series will be considered for publication only when they describe rare and original findings that have not been internationally confirmed or when they present clinical or surgical responses that can contribute to the elucidation of the pathophysiology of a disease (title, unstructured abstract, maximum of 1,000 words, 4 figures or tables, and 10 references).

Letters to the editor

Letters to the editor are considered for publication if they contain comments related to manuscripts previously published in ABO or, exceptionally, the results of original studies with content insufficient to be submitted as original article. These letters should present new information or new interpretation of existing information. When the content of a letter refers to an article previously published in ABO, such an article should be mentioned in the first paragraph of the letter and included in its reference list. In these cases, letters will be linked to the article, and the authors of the article will have their right of reply guaranteed in the same issue. Congratulation letters will not be published (title, maximum of 700 words, 2 figures or tables, and 5 references).

Review articles

Review articles should follow the editorial guidelines and are accepted by invitation only by the editor. Suggestions of topics for review articles should be sent directly to the editor. However, manuscripts cannot be submitted without an invitation (title, unstructured abstract, maximum of 4,000 words, 8 figures or tables, and 100 references).

Eye images

These include typical images in ophthalmology demonstrating clinical signs, surgeries, microscopy, ultrasonography, optical coherence computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, followed by an explanatory text (150 words and 5 references).

Editorial Process

Manuscripts considered for publication are those that meet all the journal’s requirements. The editorial office will inform the authors if the manuscript fails to meet such requirements. Upon notification, the corresponding author is given 30 days to make the necessary changes in the manuscript. If the deadline is not met, the manuscript will be excluded from the editorial process.

Manuscripts submitted to ABO are initially evaluated by the editors to check for content and compliance with the editorial guidelines. After this assessment, all manuscripts are sent for peer review. The anonymity of reviewers is preserved throughout the process. However, the authors do not remain anonymous.

After the initial editorial evaluation, reviewers’ comments are sent to the authors to guide the implementation of changes in the text. After implementing these changes accordingly, the revised manuscript should be resubmitted along with a letter (which is sent as a supplementary document) that contain specific indications of all changes made to the manuscript or the reasons why the suggested changes were not made. Manuscripts that are resubmitted without a letter will be withheld until the editorial office receives the letter. The revised manuscript should be submitted 30 days after the authors were informed of the need to revise their manuscript. Manuscripts will be excluded from the editorial process if the authors fail to meet this deadline. Ultimately, the publication will be based on the final approval of the editors.

Manuscripts submitted to ABO should not be simultaneously considered for publication by other journals. Moreover, total or partial publication or translation for publication in another language of the manuscripts submitted to ABO without the permission of the editors of ABO is prohibited.

Authorship

The criteria for authorship of manuscripts in medical journals are well established. Individuals who have contributed concretely during the following three phases of manuscript preparation should be considered authors:

  1. Conception and design, acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data.
  2. Draft or critical revision of the article for important intellectual content.
  3. Final approval of the version to be published.

In manuscripts submitted to ABO, all authors should meet the aforementioned criteria, and all persons who meet these criteria are listed. Individuals who hold headship positions cannot be considered authors of manuscripts based only on their positions. ABO does not accept the participation of honorary authors.

The corresponding author should complete and submit the Author Contribution Statement as a supplementary document.

Guidelines for Excellent Research

Authors must follow the appropriate guidelines below before submitting their work:

  • CONSORT (Controlled and randomized clinical trials)
  • STARD (Diagnostic instruments or techniques)
  • PRISMA (Systematic reviews and meta-analyses)
  • STROBE (Observational studies)
Plagiarism and editorial misconduct
To promote the integrity of research, strengthening, and transparency in the process, all materials are published in accordance with the Guide to Good Practices for Strengthening Ethics in Scientific Publication and the Open Science Compliance Form.

Manuscript Preparation

Manuscripts should only be submitted online using the appropriate interface of ABO. The following guidelines were based on the format suggested by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and published as Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals.

Only the manuscripts complying with these guidelines will be considered for review.

The text should be sent as a digital file. Only.doc files are accepted. The text should be typed double-spaced, in 12-point font. The pages should be numbered in Arabic numerals, and each section should start on a new page.

The manuscript should be structured as follows: Title page, Abstract and Keywords, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgments (if any), References, Tables (optional), and Figures (optional) including legends.

  1. Title Page. This page should contain the following: a) title (no more than 135 characters with spaces); b) running title to be used as a page heading (no more than 60 characters with spaces); c) authors’ names as they should appear in print; d) each author’s affiliation* (city, state, country and, if applicable, department, school, and university); e) corresponding author’s name, address, phone number, and email; f) sources of financial support (if any); g) project number and institution responsible for the ethical approval, or the Research Ethics Committee; h) statement of conflicts of interests of all authors; and I) clinical trial registration number on a public trial registry.

* Professional or academic degrees and job position will not be published.

Approval of the Institutional Review Board. On the title page, all retrospective, cross-sectional, or prospective studies involving primary data collection or clinical and surgical reports should include the project number and name of the institutional IRB that approved the study. Studies involving humans should be compliant with the Declaration of Helsinki, whereas studies involving animals should be in accordance with the principles suggested by the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology.

As a supplementary document, the corresponding author should send the IRB approval or its report stating that the evaluation of the project by the committee is not necessary. The author cannot decide on the need for evaluation by the Research Ethics Committee.

Letter of approval by the Human or Animal Research Ethics Committee of the organization where the study was conducted. Studies conducted in Brazil must provide the number of the CAAE - Certificate of Presentation for Ethical Consideration (www.plataformabrasil.saude.gov.br/login.jsf)

Statement of conflicts of interest. The title page should contain the statement of conflicts of interest of all authors (even if there is no conflict of interest). For more information about potential conflicts of interest, refer to the World Association of Medical Editors: Conflict of interest in peer-reviewed medical journals.

All authors should send the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors: Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest as supplementary documents.

Clinical Trials. All clinical trials shall include on the title page the registration number from an international registry that allows free access to trial information (e.g., U.S. National Institutes of Health, Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number –ISRCTN, University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trials Registry –UMIN CTR, Nederlands Trial Register, and Registro Brasileiro de Ensaios Clínicos –ReBEC).

2. Abstract and Keywords. Structured abstracts (Objective, Methods, Results, and Conclusions) should have no more than 300 words, whereas unstructured abstracts should have no more than 150 words. After the abstract, five keywords in English listed by the National Library of Medicine (MeSH - Medical Subject Headings) are provided.

3. Abstract and Keywords in Portuguese. This is an optional structured abstract (Objective, Methods, Results, and Conclusions) with no more than 300 words, whereas unstructured abstract should have no more than 150 words. Below the abstract, provide five keywords in Portuguese listed by BVS (DeCS - Descritores em Ciências da Saúde). Portuguese translation may be provided by ABO at publication.

4. Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. In the text, citations should be presented as superscript Arabic numerals in parentheses. The names of the authors should not be mentioned in the text.

5. Acknowledgments. This section should include the collaboration of people, groups, or institutions that deserve to be acknowledged but do not meet the criteria for authorship. Statisticians and medical editors may meet the criteria for authorship and thus should be acknowledged as authors. When they do not meet the criteria for authorship, they should be mentioned in this section. Writers who are not identified in the manuscript cannot be accepted as authors; therefore, professional writers should be mentioned in this section.

6. Author Contributions. In this section, the authors must provide the contribution of each author to the manuscript. Use initials to refer for each author name to: conceptualization of the manuscript and development of the methodology, data collection and curation, data analysis, data interpretation, funding acquisition and resources and project administration, supervision, writing the original draft of the manuscript, and writing–review and editing. All authors read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

7. References. Citations (references) of authors in the text should be numbered sequentially as they are cited and identified using superscript Arabic numerals. References should be in accordance with the format suggested by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), based on the examples below.

The titles of the journals should be abbreviated according to the style provided by the National Library of Medicine.

The names of all authors should be cited for references with up to six authors. For studies with seven or more authors, cite only the first six authors followed by et al.

Examples of references

Journal articles

Azad R, Sinha S, Nishant P. Asymmetric diabetic retinopathy. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2021;69(11):3026-34.

Books

Nakanami CR, Zin A, Belfort Jr. R. Oftalmopediatria. São Paulo: Roca; 2010.

Book chapters

Kriger FT, Schor P. Anatomia e fisiologia. In: Nakanami CR, Zin A, Belfort Jr. R. Oftalmopediatria. São Paulo: Roca; 2010. p.1-38.

Thesis/dissertation

Andrade Júnior N. Influência da ceratometria e profundidade de câmara anterior obtidas pela biometria óptica e por sistema Scheimpflug na predição do poder dióptrico de lente intraocular multifocal calculada para emetropia [tese]. São Paulo: Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina; 2018.

Electronic documents

Alimaw YA, Hussen MS, Tefera TK, Yibekal BT. Knowledge about cataract and

associated factors among adults in Gondar town, northwest Ethiopia. PLoS One. 2019 [cited 2019 may 18];14(4):e0215809. Available from: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0215809

Books

Tran K, Ryce A. Laser refractive surgery for vision correction: a review of clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. Ottawa(ON): Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health; 2018. [cited 2019 Jan 21]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532537/

Book chapters

Adams N, Skelton D, Bailey C, Howel D, Coe D, Lampitt R, et al. Visually impaired Older people’s exercise program for fails prevention (VIOLET): a feasibility study. Southampton (UK): NIHR Journals Library; 2019. (Public Health Research, n.7.4). Chapter 2. Stakeholder involvement in the adaptation of the falls management exercise program: conduct and results of focus groups [cited 2019 Feb 12]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536869/

Thesis/Dissertation

Lima VF de. Comparação da densidade óptica de pigmento macular em pacientes diabéticos e indivíduos normais: avaliação dos principais métodos e associação com a idade [tese]. São Paulo: Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista de Medicina 2013. [citado 2019 Maio 19]. Disponível em: http://repositorio.unifesp.br/bitstream/handle/11600/23216/Tese-14375.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

7. Tables. Tables should be numbered sequentially using Arabic numerals in the order they are mentioned in the text. All tables should have a title and a heading for all columns. Their format should be simple, with no vertical lines or color in the background. All abbreviations (even if previously defined in the text) and statistical tests should be explained below the table. When the table is extracted from another study, provide the bibliographical source of the table. Do not include tables in the main document of the manuscript; they should be uploaded as supplementary documents

8. Figures (graphs, photos, illustrations, and charts). Figures should be numbered sequentially using Arabic numerals in the order they are mentioned in the text. The figures will be published by ABO at no cost to the authors.

Graphs should be in shades of gray on a white background and without three-dimensional or depth effects. Instead, of using pie charts, data should be included in tables or described in the text.

Photos and illustrations should have a minimum resolution of 300 DPI for the size of the publication (about 2,500 x 3,300 pixels for a full page). Image quality is considered in the evaluation of the manuscript.

The main document should contain all figure legends, typed double-spaced and numbered using Arabic numerals.

Do not embed figures in the main text. They should be uploaded as supplementary documents.

9. Abbreviations and Acronyms. Abbreviations and acronyms should be preceded by the spelled-out abbreviation on the first mention in the text and in the legends of tables and figures (even if they have been previously mentioned in the text). Titles and abstracts should not contain abbreviations and acronyms.

10. Units of Measurement: Values of physical quantities should be used in accordance with the standards of the International System of Units.

11. Language. Texts should be clear to be considered appropriate for publication in a scientific journal. Use short sentences, written in a direct and active voice. Foreign words should be in italics. Therapeutic agents should be mentioned by their generic names with the following information in parentheses: trade name, manufacturer’s name, city, state, and country of origin. All instruments or apparatus should be mentioned including their trade name, manufacturer’s name, city, state, and country of origin. The superscript symbol of trademark ® or ™ should be used in all names of instruments or trade names of drugs. Whenever there are doubts about the style, terminology, units of measurement, and related issues, refer to the AMA Manual of Style 10th edition.

12. Original Documents. Corresponding authors should keep the original documents and the letter of approval from the Research Ethics Committee for studies involving humans or animals, consent form signed by all patients, statement of agreement with the full content of the study signed by all authors, statement of conflict of interest of all authors, and records of the data collected for the study results.

13. Corrections and Retractions. Errors may be noted in published manuscripts that require the publication of a correction. However, some errors pointed out by any reader may invalidate the results or the authorship of a manuscript. If substantial doubt arises about the honesty or integrity of a submitted manuscript, it is the editor's responsibility to exclude the possibility of fraud. In these situations, the editor will inform the institutions involved and the funding agencies about the suspicion and wait for their final decision. If there is confirmation of a fraudulent publication in ABO, the editor will act in compliance with the protocols suggested by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).


Checklist

Before submitting the manuscript, authors should ensure that all the following items are adhered to:

  • The manuscript is prepared in accordance with the instructions to authors.
  • The maximum number of words, tables, figures, and references is followed according to the manuscript type.
  • Title page containing the clinical trial registration number is not included in the main document.
  • No figures and tables are embedded in the main text of the manuscript.
  • All figures and tables were uploaded separately as supplementary documents.
  • The Author Contribution Statement is completed and saved as a digital file to be sent as a supplementary document.
  • The Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest forms of all authors are completed and saved as digital files to be sent as supplementary documents.
  • The digital version of the report provided by the Institutional Review Board containing the approval of the project should be sent as a supplementary document.

List of Websites

AMA Manual of Style 10th edition
http://www.amamanualofstyle.com/

ANZCTR (Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry)
http://www.anzctr.org.au

ARVO (The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology). Ethics and regulations in human research committee
https://www.arvo.org/About/volunteer/committees/ethics-and-regulations-in-human-research-committee/

Authors’ Participation For the ABO
http://www.cbo.com.br/site/files/Formulario Contribuicao dos Autores.pdf

CONSORT (CONsolidated Standards of Reporting Trials)
http://www.consort-statement.org/

COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) Flowcharts
http://publicationethics.org/resources/flowcharts

DeCS - Health Sciences Keywords in Portuguese
http://decs.bvs.br/

International Committee Medical Journal Editor.
Scientific Misconduct, Expressions of Concern, and Retraction http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/publishing-and-editorial-issues/scientific-misconduct-expressions-of-concern-and-retraction.html

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors- ICMJE
http://www.icmje.org/

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors- Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest
http://www.icmje.org/coi_disclosure.pdf

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors-ICMJE.
Format suggested by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors -ICMJE.
Defining the role of authors and contributors http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html

ISRCTN (International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number)
http://isrctn.com/

MeSH (Medical Subject Headings)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh

National Library of Medicine.
List of journal indexed in Index Medicus http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/journals

National Library of Medicine.
Samples of formatted references for authors of journal articles https://wayback.archive-it.org/org-350/20190414183852/https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html

NTR (Netherlands Trial Register)
http://www.trialregister.nl/

Online interface for submission of manuscripts to ABO
https://mc04.manuscriptcentral.com/abo-scielo

PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses)
http://www.prisma-statement.org/

ReBEC (Registro Brasileiro de Ensaios Clínicos)
http://www.ensaiosclinicos.gov.br/

STARD (Standards for the Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies)
http://www.stard-statement.org/

STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational studies in Epidemiology)
http://www.strobe-statement.org/

U.S. National Institutes of Health. Clinical Trials
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov

UMIN CTR (University Hospital Medical Information Network. Clinical Trials Registry)
https://www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/

World Association of Medical Editors. Conflict of interest in peer-reviewed medical journals.
http://wame.org/wame-editorial-on-conflict-of-interest

World Association of Medical Editors. Declaration of Helsinki; medical research involving human subjects.
https://www.wma.net/what-we-do/medical-ethics/declaration-of-helsinki/

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