INSTRUCTION TO AUTHOR

Authors should keep their manuscripts as short as possible. Manuscripts should be typed double spaced in a single column in A4 size only. It should be paginated on the upper right-hand corner of each page, beginning with the title page. The language of manuscript must be simple and explicit. If needed, the authors should consult those experienced in scientific writing and communication. Recent issues of the Drug Bulletin should be reviewed for the general format adopted in respect to various elements of a paper. Identity of the author(s) must NOT appear anywhere in the manuscript (except on the first page file).

(A) Review Articles and (B) Educational Forum (C) Short Communication (D) Case Report

Reviews are written by researchers of considerable experience in the field concerned. The authors should review the recent trends or advances in that field in the light of their own work. However, when an author has not done enough original work on a topic but wants to share the knowledge on recent advances/trends which may be useful for post-graduate students or junior members of faculty, one may do so by writing for Educational Forum.

The major portion of the above articles should deal with the up-to-date developments in the field in the last 3-5 years. Authors are advised to search Medline and other databases on the Internet, apart from collecting information using conventional methods.

These articles should contain a covering letter, title page, abstract, keywords and summary (need not be structured). They should be written under appropriate sub-headings. The authors are encouraged to use flowcharts, boxes, cartoons, tables and figures for better presentation. Some of the other details are given below.

These papers should be arranged into the following sections:

1. Covering letter
2. Title page
3. Abstract and key words
4. Introduction
5. Discussion
6. Conclusion
7. Acknowledgment
8. References
9. Tables
10. Figures

1)Covering Letter

In addition to the general details (name, address, contact details including mobile number of the corresponding author), it should mention in brief what is already known about this subject and what new is added by the submitted work.

2) Title page 

It should be paginated as page 1 of the paper. It should include the title, authors’ names and affiliations, running title, address for correspondence including e-mail address and also the total number of pages, figures and tables. 

Title: 
Must be informative, specific and short. It should not exceed 150 characters. 

Authors and affiliations: 
The names of authors and their affiliations should be given. It should be made clear which address relates to which author. 

Running title: 
It is a short title printed in the journal at the top of center page of the article (except the lead page). It should be not more than 50 characters in length. 

Address for correspondence:
  The corresponding author’s address should be given on the title page. The e-mail ID of the corresponding author or the contact e-mail ID must also be provided. 

3) Abstract and key words

  Abstract:
 It must start on a new page carrying the following information: (a) Title (without authors’ names or affiliations), (b) Abstract, (c) Key words, (d) Running title. It should not exceed 250 words excluding the title and the key words. The abstract must be concise, clear and informative rather than indicative.

The abstract must be in an unstructured form and explain briefly what was intended, done, observed and concluded. The conclusions and recommendations not found in the text of the article should not be given in the abstract. 

Key words:
 Provide 3-5 keywords which will help readers or indexing agencies in cross-indexing the study. The words found in title need not be given as key words. Use terms from the latest Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus. A more general term may be used if a suitable MeSH term is not available. 

4) Introduction 

It should start on a new page. Essentially this section must introduce the subject and briefly say how the idea for research originated. Give a concise background of the study. Do not review literature extensively but provide the most recent work that has a direct bearing on the subject. Justification for research aims and objectives must be clearly mentioned without any ambiguity. The purpose of the study should be stated at the end. 

5) Discussion 

This section should deal with the interpretation, rather than recapitulation of results. It is important to discuss the new and significant observations in the light of previous work. Discuss also the weaknesses or pitfalls in the study. New hypotheses or recommendations can be put forth. 

6) Conclusion

Avoid unqualified statements and conclusions not completely supported by the data. Repetition of information given under Introduction and Results should be avoided. Conclusions must be drawn considering the strengths and weaknesses of the study. They must be conveyed in the last paragraph under Discussion. Make sure conclusions drawn should tally with the objectives stated under Introduction. 

7) Acknowledgements 

These should be typed on a new page. Acknowledge only those who have contributed to the scientific content or provided technical support. Sources of financial support may be mentioned. 

8) References 

It should begin on a new page. Papers which have been submitted and accepted but not yet published may be included in the list of references with the name of the journal and indicated as “In press”. A photocopy of the acceptance letter should be submitted with the manuscript. Information from manuscript “submitted” but “not yet accepted” should not be included. Avoid using abstracts as references. The “unpublished observations” and “personal communications” may not be used as references but may be inserted (in parentheses) in the text. 

References are to be cited in the text by superscribed number and should be in the order in which they appear. References cited only in tables or in legends to figures should be numbered in accordance with a sequence established by the first identification in the text of the particular table or illustration. As far as possible mentioning names of author(s) for reference should be avoided in the text. 

The references must be verified by the author(s) against the original documents. The list of references should be typed double spaced in the Vancouver style. Please refer to a Power point presentation on common reference styles

 9) Check list for Tables 

• Serially numbered in Arabic numerals? 
• Short self-explanatory heading given? 
• Columns have headings? 
• Rows and columns properly aligned? 
• Appropriate position in the text indicated? 

 10)Figures 

Each figure must be numbered and a short descriptive caption must be provided. A computer      drawn figure with good contrast is acceptable. Sometimes, raw data for graphs may be required in Excel sheet when the article is accepted for publication. Graphic files for diagrams and figures may be converted to *.pcx, *.tiff, *.jpg format. These files should not exceed 2 MB in size.

 11) Plagiarism:

 According to UGC guidelines the plagiarism or similarity index should be less than 10%.