INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION OF MANUSCRIPTS (as of 2022)

Authors are asked to send their mansucripts in electronic format and using British spelling in compliance with those formulated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (www.icmje.org). Barcelona Respiratory Network (BRN) Reviews publishes review articles reporting scientific studies, clinical research and innovation which contribute to overall knowledge of respiratory health by invitation.

Manuscripts submitted to BRN Reviews will be accepted with the understanding that the authors have not submitted their material to another journal or published the material elsewhere. Authors are asked to disclose any affiliations, including financial, consultancy, or institutional associations that might lead to bias or conflict of interest.

All authors are required to upload disclosure forms when their manuscript is submitted to the Journal. Please upload these forms along with your other manuscript files, choosing File Designation: “Disclosure of Financial Interest Form(S).” The ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest is preferred and is available for downloading from www.brnreviews.com (see, ‘Conflicts of Interest’).

ONLINE SUBMISSION Manuscripts should be submitted in electronic format to maria.ahn@permanyer.com to be considered for publication.

**To avoid duplications in the system, please refrain from creating a new request when resubmitting your modified files. You should continue using the same reference until your manuscript completes the editorial process.

Double spacing should be used throughout the manuscript, including the following sections, each of which should begin on a separate sheet: Title page, Abstract, Text, Acknowledgements, Disclosures, References, Figures, Legends, Tables, and Captions. Abbreviations should be those accepted internationally, and defined where they first appear in the text. System International (SI) units should be used where appropriate.

Manuscripts must be no longer than 5000 words (preferably in Times New Roman; font, 12, double space). This word count should exclude the abstract, references, and legends. Authors will be asked to revise their text if the 5000 word limit is exceeded. State the word count for the text at the bottom of the abstract. Figures/Tables: min, 5; max, 7. References should be limited to 125. The number of authors is limited to 3. All manuscripts are peer-reviewed.

 

TITLE PAGE

The title page should include a concise and descriptive title (limited to 100 characters, including spaces); the first name, middle initial, and last name of each author; the department and institution affiliations of each author; and the telephone number and the e-mail address of the corresponding author. The corresponding author listed on the title page does not have to be the same person listed as the corresponding author for Peer Review in the ScholarOne system.

The title page should carry the full title of the paper and a ‘running title’ of no more than 50 characters including spaces. The title page should also include the first name, middle initial and last name of each author. If the work is attributed to a department or institution, its full name and location should be included.

 

ABSTRACT

The abstract should not exceed 150 words. It should state the primary objective of the review, the principal reasoning for the procedures adopted, the main results of the referred studies, and the conclusions that can be drawn from the data available. Numerical data may be included, but should be kept to a minimum.

 

KEYWORDS

The abstract should be followed by a list of 3-5 keywords, which will assist in the crossindexing of the article. The terms used should be from the Medical Subject Headings list of the Index Medicus.

 

TEXT

Full papers should be divided into sections at the convenience of the author, but should include an Introduction and a Conclusion.

 

REFERENCES

References should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they first appear in the text. They should be assigned Arabic numerals. References should include the names of the first three authors (adding “, et al.”) or all if there are not more than six. References should also include full title and source information. Journal names, written in alphabetical order (acronyms are discouraged), should be abbreviated as in the Index Medicus. Examples:

• Journal article: Felltkamp T, Ringrose J. Acute anterior uveitis and spondyloarthropathies. Curr Opin Rheumatol. 1998;10:314-8.
• Article in electronic format: Morse SS. Factors in the emergence of infectious diseases. Emerg Infect Dis. Available from: http:// www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/eid.htm. Accessed 15 November 2010.
• Book: Traboulsi EI. Genetic diseases of the eye. New York: Oxford University Press; 1998.
• Book chapter: Tovilla-Pomar JL. Nociones de refracción. In: Villanueva- Díaz G. Introducción a la oftalmología. México: Litografía Senefelder. 1978;425-453.

Personal communications and unpublished work should not be included in the reference list, but should appear in parentheses in the text. Submitted but not yet accepted work should not be cited. Work accepted for publication but not yet released should be included in the reference list with the words «in press» in parentheses beside the name of the journal. References must be verified by the author(s) against the original documents.

 

ILLUSTRATIONS

References to figures and tables should be made in order of appearance in the text and should be in Arabic numerals in parentheses, e.g. (Fig. 2). Figures should be professionally drawn and photographed; freehand or typewritten lettering is unacceptable. Photomicrographs must have internal scale markers. If photographs of people are used, their identities must be obscured or the picture must be accompanied by written permission of the subject to use the photograph.

If a previously published figure is used, the original source must be acknowledged and written permission for print and electronic (internet and CD-ROM) formats from the copyright holder must be submitted with the material. Permission is required regardless of authorship or publisher, except for documents in the public domain. Figures may be reduced, cropped or deleted at the discretion of the Editor.

 

CAPTIONS FOR ILLUSTRATIONS

Captions should be typed in double spacing, beginning on a separate page. Each one should have an Arabic numeral corresponding to the illustration or table to which it refers. Internal scale should be explained and staining methods for photomicrographs should be identified. BRN Reviews follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Guidelines for issues of fraud, image manipulation, and duplicate publication. All abbreviations and acronyms included in illustrations have to be spelt out at the bottom of each figure.

 

TABLES

Each table should be typed on a separate sheet in double spacing. Tables should not be submitted as photographs. Each table should be assigned an Arabic numeral (e.g. Table 3) and a brief title. All abbreviations and acronyms included in tables have to be spelt out at the bottom of each table.

 

EDITORIAL PROCESS

The editorial process consists of 6 stages:

1. Reception of the manuscript (indeterminate, depending on whether the author meets the requirements): its objective is to verify that the manuscript complies with the specifications of these instructions for authors and that the submitted documentation is complete.

2. Initial editorial review (maximum 5 business days): its objective is to corroborate the relevance, timeliness, originality, and scientific contribution of the manuscript, as well as the methodological and statistical soundness of the study. At this time, it will be submitted to an electronic plagiarism detection system. Derived from this, a rejected opinion may be obtained, or it will be sent for review by peer researchers.

3. Review by peer researchers (maximum 30 business days): the opinion of at least two experts in the area in question will be obtained, who will evaluate the technical and methodological aspects of the investigation.

4. Editorial review (maximum 7 business days): its objective is to make a decision based on the opinion of peer reviewers. The opinion can be rejected, major changes, minor changes or accepted. In the case of major or minor changes, it will be submitted again for evaluation by the initial peer reviewers.

5. Final edition (6 weeks): its objective is the technical and linguistic edition (and translation), layout of galleys, DOI assignment, and correction by the author.

6. Advanced publication: All manuscripts will be published ahead of print on the journal's website as soon as they complete the editing process, until they are incorporated into a final issue of the journal.

 

PRINT PROOFS (PDF) OF ACCEPTED ARTICLES 

The corresponding author will receive proofs of the article for revision and correction of terminology errors, or any other updates related to facts/figures. As the article will already have been edited according to the journal’s internal editorial guidelines, style corrections will not be accepted. The corresponding author will receive an email with the article in PDF format, on which they can leave their comments. Authors will need to have Adobe Reader (version 9, or a later version), downloadable for free). For other system requirements, please visit the Adobe website.

Alternatively, authors may list their corrections and submit them via email. Any major changes at this stage will be subject to the approval of the Editor. Authors should make sure to include all changes in a single email, as we cannot guarantee the inclusion of subsequent corrections.

The proof review is the responsibility of the author.

Relevant links

Committee on Publication Ethics. Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Responsibilities in the Submission and Peer-Review Process