scientific writing 2014
TRANSCRIPT
MANUSCRIPT WRITINGKhaled AlbazliManal Alotaibi MBBS, Internal Medicine demonstrators
Outlines
Introduction to scientific writing IMARD Format Manuscript writing Common editing mistakes
Why Scientific Writing?
When a doctor decides to conduct a study, at the same time the doctor should decide to write and publish the study result as well.
If you start to work but you will not finish it, why do you start it?
Moreover, if you finish the work but you will not publish it, why do you finish it?
Michael Faraday,
Why Scientific Writing?
Writing and publishing a study result is importanteither for the investigator or the reader. For the investigator or writer, publication is
evidence that he/she has conducted a clinical trial according to good clinical practice.
While for the reader, publication of a study mayprovide greater knowledge on research of medical/health care science which may bring advantages to enhance medical services for patients.
On the other hand, publishing a manuscript of study
result in medical or biomedical journal is not as easyas we imagine.
Plan effectively
For original research: have a clear research question seek statistical advice use the right study design act ethically keep an open mind and minimise bias agree who will be principal investigator agree who will be authors and
contributors agree to publish even negative results
WHAT DO THE READER AND EDITOR WANT?
Who will be the readers of my article?
What will make the readers interested in
this article?
What will be the main concern of the
readers?
Do the readers understand the situation
and condition explained in this article?
What does the writer expect after the
reader has done reading this article?
Top 10 Reasons Manuscripts Rejected
1. Poor organization throughout, writing, spelling
2. Disorganized study design
3. Defective tables, figures
4. No hypothesis or problem statement
5. Inappropriate statistical methods
6. Over interpretation of results
7. No or insufficient conclusion
8. Poorly written abstract/title
9. Article unfocused
10. Wrong journal, format, preparation
Pierson DJ, Respiratory Care 49(10), 2004
Byrne DW, Publishing Medical Research Papers, Williams and Wilkins, 1998
Avoi
dabl
e
Writing scientific manuscripts need not be difficult or painful .
With a little bit of organization, discipline, and persistence, writing manuscripts can be learned rapidly, thus producing excellent exchange of experience, personal success, and scientific progress.
Clear writing
Keep it simple: use short, familiar words
Avoid jargon and acronyms
Be specific
Be concrete, not abstract
Say what you mean and mean what you say
Writing is an Essential Skill
The career of a researcher can depend heavily on this skill
The ability to communicate clearly and precisely through the written word is an essential skill for medical researchers
Try to Avoid
Long complicated sentence Pretentious language Repetition Meaningless phrases Irrelevant material Cluttering a paragraph Citing too many references
Meaningless Phrases
The results are given in Figure1, where it is shown that temperature was directly proportional to metabolic rate…
OR
Temperature was directly proportional to metabolic rate (Fig.1)..
In order to determine... OR to determine… !!!!
Cluttering a Paragraph
Don’t have more than one main idea or theme in a paragraph? It is better in such cases to rather write two or more linked paragraphs.
Don’t overkill with too many citations. Just cite the most important, most recent.
(However, in a review paper it may be appropriate to have an extensive/complete list of references).
Before Starting to Write the Paper
Record your readings (results) Make tables Draw graphs Keep file to record summaries of
results and any observation however insignificant
Date the files Revise your readings, you may need to
repeat an experiment while you still have the materials.
Write ideas when ever they come to you
IMRAD Format
I = Introduction, what question (problem) was studied
M = Methods, how was the problem studied
R = Results, what are the findings A = and D = Discussion, what do these findings
mean
Introduction Why was the study undertaken? What was the research question, the tested hypothesis or the
purpose of the research? Methods When, where, and how was the study done? What materials were used or who was included in the study
groups (patients, etc.)? Results What answer was found to the research question what did the study find? Was the tested hypothesis true? Discussion What might the answer infer and why does it matter? How does it fit in with what other researchers have found? What are the perspectives for future research?
Essential Parts of a Scientific paper
Title: Describe concisely the core contents of the paper
Abstract: Summarize the major elements of the paper
Introduction: provide context and rationale for the study
Materials: Describe the experimental design so it is reproducible
Methods: Describe the experimental procedures Results: Summarize the findings without
interpretation Discussion: Interpret the findings of the study Summary: Summarize the findings Acknowledgement: Give credit to those who
helped you References: List all scientific papers, books and
websites that you cited
Writing and Editing for Biomedical Publication .
The first step: is always to read the Guide for Authors of the journal where you intend to submit analysis (~1,000 words or less).
The second step: is to describe the results (~350 words). The methods and results are the most important parts of the
paper. When possible, use figures rather than tables to show your results.
Start the manuscript preparation by describing the materials and methods, including the planned statistical.
The discussion typically starts with a short overview of the most important results, followed by an assessment why the chosen design or model is appropriate. The discussions should place the results into contact, and present the clinical impact of the findings. The discussion should also acknowledge limitations of the study. The final conclusions should be low-key rather than exaggerated.
The last step: is writing the introduction (~350 words), the abstract, and the title page.
The Title
A good title is defined as the fewest possible words that adequately describe the contents of the paper.
The title is extremely important and must be chosen with great care as it will be read by thousands, whereas few will read the entire paper
Indexing and abstracting of the paper depends on the accuracy of the title. An improperly titled paper will get lost and will never be read.
Titles should neither be too short nor too long as to be meaningless
Waste words (studies on, investigations on, a, an, the etc) should not be used.
It should contain the keywords that reflect the contents of the paper.
It should be meaningful and not general It should be concise, specific and
informative It should capture the fundamental nature
of the experiments and findings
The Title
Examples
1. Action of Antibiotics on Bacteria
Action: should be defined Antibiotics: should be listed Bacteria: should be listed
2. Mechanism of Suppression of Non-transmissible Pneumonia in Mice Induced by Newcastle Disease Virus
How to Prepare the Title
Make a list of the most important keywords
Think of a title that contains these words The title could state the conclusion of the
paper The title NEVER contains abbreviations,
chemical formulas Think, rethink of the title before
submitting the paper Be very careful of the grammatical errors
due to faulty word order Avoid the use of the word “using”
The Abstract
An abstract can be defined as a summary of the information in a document
It is of fundamental importance that the abstract be written clearly and simply, as it is the first and sometimes the only part of the manuscript read.
It should provide a brief summary of each of the main sections (IMRAD) of the paper:
1. State the principal objective and scope of the investigation
2. Describe the methods used3. Summarize the results, and 4. State the principal conclusions It is easier to write the abstract after completion of
the paper
Criteria of the Abstract
It should not exceed 250 words It should be written in one paragraph. It should be written in the past tense as it
refers to work done. Long words should be followed by its
abbreviation which would be used through out the abstract and paper.
It should not cite any references (except in rare cases)
It should never give any information or conclusion that is not stated in the paper
Introduction
Brief and arresting
Define nature and scope of problem, but
Do not hide inconvenient facts
Provide rationale for current study State aim of study
Introduction
Adequate information to allow reader to understand and evaluate present study without referring to previous publications
Key references to support background information provided
Writing Rules for Introduction Use the present tense when referring to
work that has already been published, but past tense when referring to your own study.
Use the active voice as much as possible Avoid lengthy or unfocused reviews of
previous research. Cite peer-reviewed scientific literature or
scholarly reviews. Avoid general reference works such as textbooks.
Define any specialized terms or abbreviations
Methodology
The three questions What has been done? What did you look for? How was it done?
Methodology
• Study design (drug trial / intervention; prospective / retrospective; randomized, blinded; sensitivity of method; questionnaire; case report; guidelines; meta-analysis)
• Setting • Who is the study about? – Participants and control
subjects (in animal studies, specify genus, species) • What did you do?– Intervention– Follow up • What did you look for? – Outcome measure
Methodology
• Inclusion criteria • Exclusion criteria • Sample size calculation • Circumstances under which intervention done– Lab settings– In-patient or real life • Consent • Ethics clearance Timing and duration of intervention • Equipment / kits / manufacturer
(Sections and subsections help)
Methodology
• Define outcome • Parameters to assess outcome • Endpoint, cut-off values • Adverse events, if any
Results: General
• What did you find? • Should answer all points raised in
Methods • No new parameters • No mismatch in numbers between text
and tables / figures
Results: Participant
• How many screened? • How many eligible? • How many recruited / excluded? • How many completed study? • Reasons for lack of completeness • Compliance with therapy / protocol
Results: Data presentation
Cause of incomplete data, if any (sample lost, incomplete study)
• No repetition between text and tables • No interpretation • No adjectives (most, some, often..) • Provide value of p (“highly significant”,
“very highly significant” meaningless)
Tables and figures
Tables are appropriate for large or complicated data sets that would be difficult to explain clearly in text.
Figures are appropriate for data sets that exhibit trends, patterns, or relationships that are best conveyed visually.
Any table or figure must be sufficiently described by its title and caption or legend, to be understandable without reading the main text of the results section.
Do not include both a table and a figure showing the same information
Discussion
• Discussion of major findings in light of available data
• Discussion of important minor findings • Alternative explanations • Strengths and limitations of study • Implications of findings • Unanswered questions and future research • Summary / conclusion
Common Mistakes in Introduction • Details of previous studies • Abbreviations without full form • Details of Results and Conclusions
Common Mistakes in Methods and Results
Mixed up • Errors in data (e.g., mean age 25,
range 17-22) • Mismatch of data in Methods / Results /
Tables / Figures • Misinterpretation of data
Common Mistakes in Discussion • Repeating results • Emphasizing strengths of study over its
weaknesses • Going beyond evidence and drawing
unjustified conclusions
Journal Editors Agree
Good writing signals clear thinking and an organized approach
Clear direct English and logical, organized writing are key to acceptance
Even well-constructed study will be rejected if the writing is flawed.
Manuscript Reviews
Receipt of manuscript by editorial asst
Manuscript
EditorTitle & Abstract
Headings
References
Tables/Figures
Read Through
Journal Decision Editor
Revise-Acceptance?
Revise-Accepted
Acceptance - Outright
Rejection - Outright
Editor Reports
Summary of peer reviews
Summary of editor’s review
Appropriate to journal?
Conform to guidelines?
No
- D
OA
Yes
Peer ReviewersMasked review
Summary
Outline your paper Start early as your data is being analyzed Look at your data and decide how to organize and
present your results: tables, figures, text Patterns and clues will emerge to guide your
argument Start with results then introduction and
discussion/conclusions Write title and abstract last Put it away, re-read, give to your colleagues to read Revise, revise, and re-revise Adhere to journal guidelines! Critically evaluate your paper with an editor’s eye Write clearly, logically, and simply!
Things may help you
http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk/
Plagiarism checker.
Put the manuscript away for a couple
of days
Let go of “academic” writing habits
and don’t imitate others’ writing.
Develop your own clear, direct style
References
Fundamentals of good medical writing by Dr.Trish Groves, Deputy editor at BMJ
How to write a scientific paper By Prof. Dr. Khadiga Gaafar, Zoology Dept., Faculty of Science, Cairo
University
Writing The Biomedical Manuscript:A Systematic Approach. Christopher Dant. Stanford Medical School.
Writing for Scientic Medical Manuscript: a Guide for Preparing Manuscript Submitted to Biomedical Journals. Siti Setiati, Kuntjoro Harimurti Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia-dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital, Jakarta.
A Step by Step Guide to Writing a Scientific Manuscript, Volker Wenzel, M.D., M.Sc., Martin W. Dünser, M.D.*, Karl H. Lindner, M.D.Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Innsbruck) Medical University, Innsbruck,Austria.