Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery

Please read the guidelines below then visit the Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery (JCMS)’s submission site https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jcms to upload your manuscript. Please note that manuscripts not conforming to these guidelines may be returned. Remember you can log in to the submission site at any time to check on the progress of your paper through the peer review process.

Sage disseminates high-quality research and engaged scholarship globally, and we are committed to diversity and inclusion in publishing. We encourage submissions from a diverse range of authors from across all countries and backgrounds.

Only manuscripts of sufficient quality that meet the aims and scope of the Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery will be reviewed.

As part of the submission process you will be required to warrant that you are submitting your original work, that you have the rights in the work, and that you have obtained and can supply all necessary permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you, that you are submitting the work for first publication in the Journal and that it is not being considered for publication elsewhere and has not already been published elsewhere. Please see our guidelines on prior publication  and note that JCMS may accept submissions of papers that have been posted on pre-print servers; please alert the Editorial Office via your cover letter when submitting and include the DOI for the preprint of the designated field of the manuscript submission form. Authors should not post an updated version of their paper on the preprint server while it is being peer reviewed for possible publication in the journal. If the article is accepted for publication, the author may re-use their work according to the journal's author archiving policy. If your paper is accepted, you must include a link on your preprint to the final version of your paper.

This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

This Journal recommends that authors follow the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals formulated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this Journal. Open Access options are available - see section 3.3 below.

If you have any questions about publishing with Sage, please visit the Sage Journal Solutions Portal.
 

1. What do we publish?
   1.1 Aims & Scope
   1.2 Article types
   1.2.1 Photo-Only Submissions
   1.3 Writing your paper
   1.3.1 Make your article discoverable
2. Editorial policies
   2.1 Peer review policy
   2.2 Authorship
   2.3 Acknowledgements
   2.3.1 Third party submissions
   2.3.2 Writing assistance
   2.4 Funding
   2.5 Declaration of conflicting interests
   2.6 Research ethics and patient consent
   2.7 Clinical trials
   2.8 Reporting guidelines
   2.9 Research data
3. Publishing policies
   3.1 Publication ethics
   3.1.1 Plagiarism
   3.1.2 Prior publication
   3.2 Contributor's publishing agreement
   3.3 Open access and author archiving
4. Preparing your manuscript for submission
   4.1 Formatting
   4.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics
   4.3 Supplemental material
   4.4 English language editing services
5. Submitting your manuscript
   5.1 ORCID
   5.2 Manuscript revision
   5.3 Permissions
6. On acceptance and publication
   6.1 Sage Production
   6.2 OnlineFirst publication
   6.3 Access to your published article
   6.4 Promoting your article
7. Further information
   7.1 Appealing the publication decision

1. What do we publish?

1.1 Aims & Scope

Before submitting your manuscript, please ensure you have read the Aims & Scope.

Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery is a bimonthly, refereed journal, which aims to reflect the state of the art in cutaneous biology and medical and surgical dermatology by providing original scientific writings, as well as complete critical reviews of the dermatology literature for clinicians, trainees, and academicians. The journal endeavours to bring readers cutting-edge dermatologic information by featuring scholarly research and articles on issues of basic and applied science, and in-depth reviews, all of which provide a theoretical framework for practitioners to make sound practical decisions. The evolving fields of dermatology and dermatologic surgery are highlighted through these articles.

1.2 Article types

Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery invites you to submit original research articles, reviews of dermatologic disease and\or therapy, visual dermatology, and clinical correspondence for inclusion in upcoming issues of the journal. Manuscripts must be original material, not under simultaneous consideration by another publication, and dealing with the clinical and research aspects of skin disease and skin biology. Brief presentations reporting new or unusual information or procedures, and Letters to the Editor, with or without illustrations, are welcome.

JCMS is an English language journal and submissions must be presented in a style and grammar consistent with the highest standards of English publications.

JCMS encourages images for publication and will publish these in colour at no cost to the authors. However, these images must be artfully formatted and of superior technical quality.

JCMS utilizes online video and web casting that can be linked to manuscripts in the journal print format. These presentations must be of superior technical quality and expand the scientific information presented within the manuscript.
All accepted manuscripts will be published online ahead of print.

Original Research. Original, in-depth clinical and investigative research manuscripts will be given the highest priority for publication. Preference will be given to research that will enhance the understanding of cutaneous disease or impact the medical and/or surgical practice of dermatology.

The manuscript must be concise and the utilization of figures, tables, and diagrams is encouraged. The use of supplementary files for supporting materials may be beneficial. (The use of supplementary files is encouraged for tables and figures that are well represented in the text and not essential for the clarity of the discussion.) Manuscripts should not exceed 3000 words, excluding the abstract, references, tables, and figure legends.

Review Articles. These scholarly articles should provide a current, authoritative, referenced discussion of a disease or medical and\or surgical treatment. The purpose of these articles is to inform the practice of dermatology by critically reviewing the current understanding and\or treatment of the condition. The use of illustrations and figures is encouraged. (The use of supplementary files is encouraged for tables and figures that are well represented in the text and not essential for the clarity of the discussion.) Review articles should not include case reports, eg, “a Case Report and Review of the Literature.” Case Reports should be submitted to JCMS CaseReports at http://www.sagepub.com/jcmscr. Review articles may be submitted by authors for publication consideration or solicited by the Editor. All Review articles are subject to peer review. Manuscripts should not exceed 4500 words, excluding the abstract, references, tables, and figure legends.

In-Depth Review Articles. These reviews provide a thorough, balanced understanding of an important issue in the field, and provide suggestions for future research. To ensure a balanced perspective, authors must describe their process for identifying and including papers in the review. If there are controversies or inconsistencies in the literature being reviewed, presentation of this information in a balanced approach is required (eg, present both “sides”) and indicate where the balance currently lies. Authors are encouraged to send In-Depth Review proposals to the Editor via email for feedback prior to submission. Portions or all of In-Depth Reviews may be published online-only at the Editor’s discretion.

Clinical Correspondence. These submissions should not include specific case reports. (Case Reports should be submitted to JCMS Case Reports at http://us.sagepub.com/jcmscr). These letters also should not be subdivided into sections, eg, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, etc., and should not exceed 500 words, excluding references (limit 5). (The use of supplementary files is encouraged for tables and figures.)

Medical Letters. Novel or preliminary research findings and early reports of therapeutic trials may be considered for publication as a Medical Letter.

Surgical Letters. Novel or preliminary research findings and early reports of novel surgical techniques may be considered for publication as a Surgical Letter. The association of on-line video to complement the letter is encouraged.

Research Letters. Letters, commenting on translational research of importance to the clinical dermatologist.

Letters to the Editor. Letters to the Editor regarding previously published material should be submitted within one month of publication of the reference subject. Letters should have a descriptive title and be concise. At the Editor’s discretion, references might be published as Supplementary Data. The introduction of unsubstantiated claims or opinions will not be permitted. Each letter will be submitted to the author of the original paper for response, which, if supplied and accepted, will be published simultaneously with the letter. Final publication of either letter is at the discretion of the Editor.

1.2.1 Photo-Only Submissions

Visual Dermatology. These photo submissions by a maximum of two authors will use one unique, high quality medical image to “tell the story” without words. Single images are preferred but this one file may be formatted with two photos arranged vertically or horizontally to best fit one printed column, or with one photo inset. Short (up to 1 minute) video clips are also acceptable (a quality still image from the video must be included). A very brief statement (25 words or less; no references) of the diagnosis and perhaps the diagnostic tests to enhance the understanding of the image may be included. The brief title should include the disease/condition. These are NOT case reports; the presentation is to highlight the image. The images may not have been submitted or published elsewhere. Submissions that do not meet these guidelines will be returned without review. Authors must secure and retain permission to publish from patients/guardians.

1.3 Writing your paper

A manuscript title and abstract should be crafted to draw readers’ interest. The Sage Author Gateway has some general advice and on how to get published, plus links to further resources. Sage Author Services also offers authors a variety of ways to improve and enhance their article including English language editing, plagiarism detection, and video abstract and infographic preparation.

See 4. Preparing your manuscript for submission for section specific information.

1.3.1 Make your article discoverable

For information and guidance on how to make your article more discoverable, visit our Gateway page on How to Help Readers Find Your Article Online.

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2. Editorial policies

2.1 Peer review policy

The Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery recognizes the value and importance of peer review in
maintaining the integrity of the scientific record. The peer review process is essential to scholarly publication both as a critique and a collaboration to improve the quality of the manuscript. All manuscripts are reviewed initially by the Editors and only those papers that meet the language, scientific, and editorial standards of the journal, and fit within the aims and scope of the journal, will be circulated for further peer review.

The Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery adheres to a conventional single-anonymized reviewing policy in which the identities of the reviewers are always concealed from the author(s). In addition to the editorial review, individual manuscripts are reviewed by at least two referees. Visual Dermatology, Clinical Correspondence, and Letters to the Editor may not require peer review or may receive less than two reviews after the Editor’s assessment. Once a reviewer accepts to review the manuscript, the reviewer is requested to submit their review within 2 weeks. An editorial decision is usually reached within a week of receipt of all reviews; usually, within 6 weeks of submission. Manuscripts requiring revision, whether minor or major, must be resubmitted for further peer review after revision.

The Editor or members of the Editorial Board may occasionally submit their own manuscripts for publication consideration. In these cases, the peer review process will be managed by alternative members of the Board and the submitting Editor/Board member will have no involvement in the peer review or decision-making process.

Clarivate  Researcher Profiles

JCMS is committed to delivering high quality, timely peer-review for your paper, and as such has partnered with Clarivate. Clarivate Researcher Profiles is a third party service that seeks to track, verify, and give credit for peer review. Reviewers for JCMS can opt in to Clarivate Researcher Profiles in order to claim their reviews or have them automatically verified and added to their reviewer profile. Reviewers claiming credit for their review will be associated with the relevant journal, but the article name, reviewer’s decision, and the content of their review is not published. For more information, visit the Clarivate Researcher Profiles website.

2.2 Authorship

Papers should only be submitted for consideration once consent is given by all contributing authors. Those submitting papers should carefully check that all those whose work contributed to the paper are acknowledged as contributing authors.

The list of authors should include all those who can legitimately claim authorship. This is all those who:

(i) Made a substantial contribution to the concept or design of the work; or acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data,
(ii) Drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content,
(iii) Approved the version to be published,
(iv) Participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content.

Authors should meet the conditions of all of the points above. When a large, multicentre group has conducted the work, the group should identify the individuals who accept direct responsibility for the manuscript. These individuals should fully meet the criteria for authorship.

Acquisition of funding, collection of data, or general supervision of the research group alone does not
constitute authorship, although all contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship, including medical writers, should be listed in the Acknowledgments section. Please refer to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) authorship guidelines for more information on authorship.

Please note that AI chatbots, for example ChatGPT, should not be listed as authors. For more information see the policy on Use of ChatGPT and generative AI tools.

2.3 Acknowledgements

All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an Acknowledgements section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help, or a department chair who provided only general support.

Any acknowledgements should appear first at the end of your article prior to your Declaration of Conflicting Interests (if applicable), any notes, and your References.

2.3.1 Third party submissions

Where an individual who is not listed as an author submits a manuscript on behalf of the author(s), a statement must be included in the Acknowledgements section of the manuscript and in the accompanying cover letter. The statements must:

• Disclose this type of editorial assistance – including the individual’s name, company, and level of input
• Identify any entities that paid for this assistance
• Confirm that the listed authors have authorized the submission of their manuscript via third party and approved any statements or declarations, eg, conflicting interests, funding, etc.

Where appropriate, Sage reserves the right to deny consideration to manuscripts submitted by a third party rather than by the authors themselves.

2.3.2 Writing assistance

Individuals who provided writing assistance, eg, from a specialist communications company, do not qualify as authors but should be included in the Acknowledgements section. Authors must disclose any writing assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of input – and identify the entity that paid for this assistance. It is not necessary to disclose use of language polishing services.

2.4 Funding

The Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery requires all authors to acknowledge their funding in a
consistent fashion under a separate heading. Please visit the Funding Acknowledgements page on the Sage Journal Author Gateway to confirm the format of the acknowledgment text in the event of funding, or state that: "This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors."

2.5 Declaration of conflicting interests

It is the policy of JCMS to require a declaration of conflicting interests from all authors, enabling a statement to be carried within the paginated pages of all published articles.

Please ensure that a ‘Declaration of Conflicting Interests’ statement is included at the end of your manuscript, after any acknowledgements and prior to the references. If no conflict exists, please state that: "The Author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest". For guidance on conflict of interest statements, please see ICMJE recommendations.

2.6 Research ethics and patient consent

Medical research involving human subjects must be conducted according to the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki.

Submitted manuscripts should conform to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals, and all papers reporting animal and/or human studies must state in the methods section that the relevant Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board provided (or waived) approval. Please ensure that you have provided the full name and institution of the review committee, in addition to the approval number.

For research articles, authors are also required to state in the methods section whether participants provided informed consent and whether the consent was written or verbal.

Information on informed consent to report individual cases or case series should be included in the manuscript text. A statement is required regarding whether written informed consent for patient information and images to be published was provided by the patient(s) or a legally authorized representative. Please do not submit the patient’s actual written informed consent with your article, as this in itself breaches the patient’s confidentiality. The written consent itself should be held by the authors/investigators themselves, for example in a patient’s hospital record.

A statement is required regarding whether written informed consent for patient images to be published was provided by the patient(s) or a legally authorized representative. Basic masking in photos is not sufficient to ensure patient anonymity; signed consent is required and should be held by the authors/investigators.

Please also refer to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Protection of Research Participants.

All research involving animals submitted for publication must be approved by an ethics committee with oversight of the facility in which the studies were conducted. The Journal has adopted the ARRIVE guidelines.

2.7 Clinical trials

The Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery conforms to the ICMJE requirement that clinical trials are registered in a WHO-approved public trials registry at or before the time of first patient enrollment as a condition of consideration for publication. The trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract.

2.8 Reporting guidelines

The relevant EQUATOR Network reporting guidelines must be followed depending on the type of study. For example, all randomized controlled trials submitted for publication must include a completed CONSORT flow chart as a cited figure and the completed CONSORT checklist must be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses must include the completed PRISMA flow chart as a cited supplementary figure and the completed PRISMA checklist must be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. The EQUATOR wizard can help you identify the appropriate guideline. If your research involves animals, you will be asked to confirm that you have carefully read and adhered to the ARRIVE guidelines.

Other resources can be found at NLM’s Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives.

2.9 Research data

The journal is committed to facilitating openness, transparency, and reproducibility of research, and has the following research data sharing policy. For more information, including FAQs, please visit the Sage Research Data policy pages.

Subject to appropriate ethical and legal considerations, authors are encouraged to:

• share your research data in a relevant public data repository
• include a data availability statement linking to your data. If it is not possible to share your data, we encourage you to consider using the statement to explain why it cannot be shared.
• cite this data in your research

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3. Publishing Policies

3.1 Publication ethics

Sage is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view the Publication Ethics page on the Sage Author Gateway.

3.1.1 Plagiarism

The Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery and Sage take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism, or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of published articles. Equally, we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. Submitted articles may be checked with duplication-checking software. Where an article, for example, is found to have plagiarised other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with insufficient acknowledgement, or where the authorship of the article is contested, we reserve the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum (correction); retracting the article; taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of the author's institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; or taking appropriate legal action.

3.1.2 Prior publication

If material has been previously published, it is not generally acceptable for publication in a Sage journal. However, there are certain circumstances where previously published material can be considered for publication. Please refer to the guidance on the Sage Author Gateway or if in doubt, contact the Editor at the address given below.

3.2 Contributor's publishing agreement

Before publication, Sage requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. Sage’s Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is an exclusive licence agreement, which means that the author retains copyright in the work but grants Sage the sole and exclusive right and licence to publish for the full legal term of copyright. Exceptions may exist where an assignment of copyright is required or preferred by a proprietor other than Sage. In this case, copyright in the work will be assigned from the author to the society. Authors will be provided a link via email to complete the form electronically once their manuscript is accepted. For more information, please visit the Sage Author Gateway.

3.3 Open access and author archiving

The Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery offers optional open access publishing via the Sage Choice programme and Open Access agreements, where authors can publish open access either discounted or free of charge depending on the agreement with Sage. Find out if your institution is participating by visiting Open Access Agreements at Sage. For more information on Open Access publishing options at Sage please visit Sage Open Access. For information on funding body compliance, and depositing your article in repositories, please visit Sage’s Author Archiving and Re-Use Guidelines and Publishing Policies.

Please note that Sage has several Open Access Agreements in place with participating institutions. This allows institutions to help cover the cost of publishing open access, often resulting in no cost for the authors. If you have a qualifying affiliation, you will automatically receive this offer from Sage’s Open Access Portal. We encourage the corresponding author to check and update their affiliation in SageTrack to be sure they receive relevant offers. For authors in Canada, please be sure your university affiliation is included, as the CRKN agreement is based on university name.

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4. Preparing your manuscript for submission

4.1 Formatting

Correct preparation of the manuscript will expedite the review and publishing process. Incorrectly formatted documents will be returned to the author for correction prior to peer review. Manuscripts must conform to acceptable English usage. For further questions concerning style, consult a recent issue of this journal or the American Medical Association’s Manual of Style.

Preferred format for the text and tables of your manuscript is Word in 12 point Arial or Times New Roman fonts. Tables may be formatted in Word or Excel. The text should be double-spaced throughout with a 3cm for left and right margins and 5cm at head and foot.

Word Count

The electronic total word count of the manuscript text should not exceed the following:

Original research articles – 3000 words, excluding the abstract, references, tables, and figure legends
Review articles – 4500 words, excluding the abstract, references(50-75), tables, and figure legends

In-Depth Review articles – 12,000 words, excluding the abstract, references, tables, and figure legends; 200 references, most from the last 10 years

Clinical Correspondence – 500 words, excluding references (limit 5)

Sections of the Manuscript (items in order from front to back; pages must be numbered consecutively)

Arrange the Main Document of the manuscript as follows: (1) title page; (2) abstract; (3) text; (4) acknowledgments; (5) funding; (6) conflicting interests disclosures; (7) references; (8) tables; and (9) figure legends. Figures will be submitted as individual files.

(1) Title Page

Title. The title is limited to 100 characters (including spaces) and should be crafted to draw reader interest. The title may not contain acronyms or abbreviations. All submissions, including correspondence, must have a descriptive title.

Authors.

List all authors by first name, all initials, family name, and highest earned academic degree or licensure in accordance with the American Medical Association’s Manual of Style, 11^th Edition (sections 2.2.3 and 13.1). Institutions and Affiliations: List the name and full address of all institutions in which the described work was conducted. List departmental affiliations of each author affiliated with that institution after each institutional address. Connect authors to departments using numbered superscripts. The affiliation listed in the manuscript should be the institution where the research was conducted. If an author has moved to a new institution since completing the research, the new affiliation can be included in a manuscript note at the end of the paper.

While author names, degrees, and institutions are included in the metadata for Sage Track, they are also required on the manuscript itself to facilitate editing before layout. JCMS follows a single-anonymized, peer-review process in which author information is available to reviewers, but reviewers are kept confidential.

Corresponding Author. Provide the name, exact postal address with zip or postal code, telephone number, and e-mail address of the author to whom communications, proofs, and requests for reprints should be sent after publication. (It does not have to be the same person designated in the online submission system to handle pre-publication correspondence.) The corresponding author must attest that no undisclosed authors contributed to the manuscript.

Keywords. Provide 3-5 keywords.

(2) Abstracts should be crafted to draw reader interest.

Original articles. Provide a structured abstract, no longer than 250 words, divided into five sections: Background, Objectives, Methods, Results, and Conclusions.

Review articles. Provide an unstructured abstract of no more than 250 words.

Visual Dermatology, Clinical Correspondence, and Letters to the Editor. No abstract is required.

(3) Text

Original Article text should be organized as follows: Introduction, Material (or Patients) and Methods, Results, and Discussion.

Cite references, tables, and figures in numeric order by order of mention in the text.

Avoid abbreviations and acronyms. Consult the American Medical Association Manual of Style, 10th edition, for recommended abbreviations. Define abbreviations at first appearance in the text. If 8 or more abbreviations or acronyms are used, provide a separate table of abbreviations and acronyms. This table should be submitted on a separate page between the Abstract and Text pages of the Main Document.

Measurements and weights should be given in standard metric units.

Statistical Nomenclature and Data Analysis. Methodology for all statistical analysis should be described, and references should be cited. Use of standard tests (chi-square test, student’s T-test, etc.) do not require citation of references. Use of proprietary software for statistical analysis should be documented.

Footnotes. Type footnotes at the bottom of the manuscript page on which they are cited.

Suppliers. Credit suppliers of drugs, equipment, and other commercial material mentioned in the article within parentheses in text, giving company name, city and state or city and country.

(4) Acknowledgments See section 2.3 above.

(5) Funding See section 2.5 above.

(6) Declaration of Conflicting Interests See section 2.4 above.

(7) References

References follow the American Medical Association’s Manual of Style, 11th Edition.

Authors are solely responsible for accuracy, completeness, and non-duplication of references.

Identify references in the text using superscript Arabic numerals. Do not cite personal communications, manuscripts in preparation, or other unpublished data.

Type references double-spaced after Acknowledgments, beginning on a separate page. Number
consecutively in the order in which they appear in the text.

Journal references should provide inclusive page numbers; book references should cite specific page numbers.

Journal abbreviations should conform to those used in Index Medicus. The style and punctuation of the references should follow the formats outlined below:

Journal Article
Kim WB, Alavi A. Clinical features and patient outcomes of hidradenitis suppurativa: a cross-sectional retrospective study. J Cutan Med Surg. 2016;20(1):52-57.

(List all authors if 6 or fewer; otherwise list first 3 and add “et al.”)

Chapter in Book
Vinten-Johansen J, Zhao Z-Q, Guyton RA. Cardiac surgical physiology. In: Cohn LH, Edmunds LH Jr, eds. Cardiac Surgery in the Adult. 2nd ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 2003:53–84. 

Internet Address
Author(s), if given. Title of specific item cited (if none, use name of organization responsible for site). Name of the website. URL. Published [date]. Accessed [date]. 

(8) Tables

Tables should be self-explanatory, and the data should not be duplicated in the text or figures, ie, the text should summarize but not repeat all of the content of the tables. Tables must be created within a text file and not imported or pasted as images.

Tables should be double-spaced on separate pages. Do not use vertical lines. Each table should be numbered (Arabic) and have a title above. Legends and explanatory notes should be placed below the table. Abbreviations used in the table follow the legend in alphabetic order. Lower case letter superscripts beginning with “a” and following in alphabetic order are used for notations regarding statistics.

(9) Figure Legends

Figure legends should be numbered (Arabic) and double-spaced in order of appearance. Identify (in alphabetical order) all abbreviations appearing in the figures at the end of each legend. Give the type of stain and magnification power for all photomicrographs.

Cite the source of previously published (print or electronic) material in the legend and indicate permission has been obtained. It is the author’s responsibility to obtain all permissions to reuse material. Proof of permission must be scanned and uploaded with manuscript files or emailed to the editorial office.

4.2 Artwork, figures, and other graphics

For guidance on the preparation of illustrations, photos, and graphs in electronic format, please visit Sage’s Manuscript Submission Guidelines.   

Figures supplied in color will appear in color in print and online.

Videos
All video and still files must be submitted online along with manuscript files for peer review.

As with photo figures, manuscripts including videos must include a clear statement that permission was granted by the patient/guardian to publish the video/stills, and a likeness release form signed by patients/guardians is required when identifiable images and/or audio are submitted. Authors retain signed permission forms. A form is available for author’s use but authors are not required to use this specific form.

Multimedia articles are papers with streaming video included within the article. Videos should contain the original content of the article. Authors must provide a caption within the manuscript for each video, which includes a clear reference to the video being available electronically. The caption and an author-provided still image from the video will be published in the print version of the Journal and both the caption and video will be published in the electronic version of the Journal.

Video files must be submitted in the following format:

• .mp4 or .mov
• Must not exceed 9 minutes.
• All narration must be in English.
• The still image submitted from each video must meet Journal figure requirements.
• Number inline video files/stills as Video 1, Video 2, etc.

Supplemental data videos are also accepted for publication online-only as separate files linked to the manuscript. Content of supplemental videos should meet the Journal criteria for all supplemental data as described below.

4.3 Supplemental material

JCMS is able to host additional materials online (eg, datasets, podcasts, videos, images) alongside the full text of the article. For more information please refer to the guidelines on submitting supplemental files.

4.4 English language editing services

JCMS is an English-language journal and submissions must be presented in a style and grammar consistent with the highest standards of English publications. Authors seeking assistance with English language editing, translation, or figure and manuscript formatting to fit the journal’s specifications should consider using Sage Language Services. Visit Sage Language Services on our Journal Author Gateway for further information.

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5. Submitting your manuscript

JCMS is hosted on Sage Track, a web based online submission and peer review system powered by ScholarOne™ Manuscripts. Visit http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jcms to login and submit your manuscript online.

IMPORTANT: Please check whether you already have an account in the system before trying to create a new one. For further guidance on submitting your manuscript online, please visit ScholarOne Online Help.

5.1 ORCID

As part of our commitment to ensuring an ethical, transparent and fair peer review process, Sage is a supporting member of ORCID, the Open Researcher and Contributor ID. ORCID provides a unique and persistent digital identifier that distinguishes researchers from every other researcher, even those who share the same name, and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between researchers and their professional activities, ensuring that their work is recognized. 

The collection of ORCID IDs from corresponding authors is now part of the submission process of this journal. If you already have an ORCID ID you will be asked to associate that to your submission during the online submission process. We also strongly encourage all co-authors to link their ORCID ID to their accounts in our online peer review platforms. It takes seconds to do: click the link when prompted, sign into your ORCID account and our systems are automatically updated. Your ORCID ID will become part of your accepted publication’s metadata, making your work attributable to you and only you. Your ORCID ID is published with your article so that fellow researchers reading your work can link to your ORCID profile and from there link to your other publications.

If you do not already have an ORCID ID please follow this link to create one or visit our ORCID homepage to learn more.

5.2 Manuscript Revision
Revised manuscripts must be submitted in two parts as word-processing files : (1) revised, marked, complete manuscript text file showing additions and deletions, preferably using Track Changes strike through format for deletions; (2) revised, unmarked manuscript text file. A point-by-point response to reviewers’ comments must be pasted into the appropriate field on the submission form in Sage Track, or uploaded as appropriate in that area.

When submitting revisions, please be sure to delete any previously submitted files that have been revised.

5.3 Permissions

Please also ensure that you have obtained any necessary permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures, or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please see the Copyright and Permissions page on the Sage Author Gateway.

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6. On acceptance and publication

6.1 Sage Production

The contact author will receive an email requesting one author complete the Sage Contributor Publishing Agreement. No accepted manuscript can be processed until a completed form has been received as directed in the email.

Your Sage Production Editor will keep you informed as to your article’s progress throughout the production process. Proofs will be made available to the corresponding author via our editing portal Sage Edit or by email, and corrections should be made directly or notified to us promptly. Authors are reminded to check their proofs carefully to confirm that all author information, including names, affiliations, sequence, and contact details are correct, and that Funding and Conflict of Interest statements are accurate.

6.2 OnlineFirst publication

OnlineFirst allows final articles (completed and approved articles awaiting assignment to a future issue) to be published online prior to their inclusion in a journal issue, which significantly reduces the lead time between acceptance and publication. Visit the Sage Journals help page for more details, including how to cite OnlineFirst articles.

6.3 Access to your published article

Sage provides authors with online access to their final article.

6.4 Promoting your article

Publication is not the end of the process! You can help disseminate your paper and ensure it is as widely read and cited as possible. The Sage Author Gateway has numerous resources to help you promote your work. Visit the Promote Your Article page on the Gateway for tips and advice. 

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7. Further information

Any correspondence, queries or additional requests for information on the manuscript submission process should be sent to the editorial office as follows: JofCMS@gmail.com.

7.1 Appealing the publication decision

Editors have very broad discretion in determining whether an article is an appropriate fit for their journal. Many manuscripts are declined with a very general statement of the rejection decision. These decisions are not eligible for formal appeal unless the author believes the decision to reject the manuscript was based on an error in the review of the article, in which case the author may appeal the decision by providing the Editor with a detailed written description of the error they believe occurred.

If an author believes the decision regarding their manuscript was affected by a publication ethics breach, the author may contact the publisher with a detailed written description of their concern, and information supporting the concern, at publication_ethics@sagepub.com.

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