Information for Authors
Authorship Criteria and Contributions
Ethics of Studies Involving Humans and Animals
Conflicts of Interest
Clinical Trial Registration
Ethics of Scientific Publishing
Scientific Misconducts
Guidelines for Preparation of Manuscript
Manuscript Length
Manuscript Format
Title page
Running title
Requirements for Different Types of Articles
Original Articles
Review articles
Short communication/Brief reports
A letter to the editor
Editorial article
Case Reports
Submission requirements
Page charges
Disposal of material
Submission of manuscript
Review process
Responsibilities of authors
Correction of Errata
Archiving policy
General Information
The International Journal of Reproductive BioMedicine (IJRM), formerly published as "Iranian Journal of Reproductive Medicine (ISSN: 1680-6433)", is a peer-reviewed scientific monthly publication of the Yazd Research and Clinical Center for Infertility, Yazd Reproductive Sciences Institute, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran.
Aims and Scope
This journal publish Commentary Papers, Review Articles, Short Communications, Case Reports, Photo Clinics, and Letters to the Editor on all aspects of basic and clinical research in the fields of fertility and infertility, ethical and social issues of assisted reproductive technologies, cellular and molecular biology of reproduction including the development of gametes and early embryos, assisted reproductive technologies in model system and in a clinical environment, reproductive endocrinology, andrology, epidemiology, pathology, genetics, oncology, surgery, psychology, and physiology. Emerging topics including cloning and stem cells are encouraged.
Publisher
Research and Clinical Center for Infertility, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, Yazd, Iran. (https://en.ssu.ac.ir/publications/)
Ethical Considerations
IJRM is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and to ensure high-quality scientific publications uses COPE’s flowcharts and guidelines in approaching any ethical misbehavior. This Journal with a rigorous review process and clear ethical policies, supports the publication of high-quality scientific studies, and also follows the guidelines mentioned in the last version of "Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals" issued by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).
Authors who submit their articles to our journal must:
- Ensure that their manuscripts are ethically sound and meet the necessary ethical standards reflected in IJRM policies.
- Present their research findings accurately in the IJRM format including Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion.
- Ensure accurate inclusion of the names of all and only those who qualify for authorship and clearly state their contributions.
- Disclose any potential competition or conflict of interest.
- The data and methods used in the research should present in sufficient detail in the manuscript so that other researchers can replicate their work. IJRM recommended that the raw data be made publicly available unless there is a compelling reason (e.g. participant's confidentiality).
- Note that submitting the articles to more than one journal at the same time is not ethical and considered as misconduct.
- The results of the research must not previously publish, and any translation must follow our translation policy.
- For any previously published content such as figures or tables, permission to reproduce from the copyright holder is required.
Ethics of Studies Involving Humans and Animals
In all research conducted on human/animal subjects, human tissues, or human data, even non-interventional studies (such as surveys and questionnaire studies), authors must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki rules in their research report. Also, the approval code of the ethics committee should be mentioned with the name of the relevant ethics committee. Also, the ethics committee approval letter, including the research title, the date of approval, and the name of the ethics committee, must be submitted with the manuscript.
If, for some reason, ethical approval is not required, authors must provide the documentation of their ethics committee exemption. Where a study has been granted an exemption, the name of the ethics committee that made the recommendation should be listed in the “Ethical consideration” section with a full explanation of why ethical approval is not required.
All research participants should be informed about the aims of the study and any possible side effects of the drugs and intervention before starting the research. Written informed consent must be obtained from all participants in the study and this topic should also be mentioned in the “Ethical Considerations" section. In case of any changes in the study protocol for any reason or detecting of new side effects, it is necessary to obtain informed consent again and mention it in their paper. Details about the participants should be as anonymous as possible. This information should state in the manuscript and the protocol number or exempt status of approved protocols should state in the manuscript at the time of submission for review.
The editors reserve the right to reject any submission that does not meet these requirements. The journal reserves the right to ask the authors to provide consent forms signed by the participants, if necessary.
Authorship Criteria and Contributions
Based on the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), authors should have made significant conceptual, intellectual, experimental, and analytical contributions to the research, as well as having participated in writing and revising the manuscript. Also each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to be responsible for its content.
All authors must sign the IJRM Authorship Form (typed or printed name is not acceptable) and include the form on initial submission.
IJRM follows the ICMJE guidelines which state that in order to qualify for authorship of a manuscript; authors must meet all four criteria:
- “Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND
- Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND
- Final approval of the version to be published; AND
- Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.”
All authors who have the first criterion should be provided and final approval of the manuscript opportunity to participate in the review, drafting and preparation of the manuscript. Unless the person withdraws from the participation in the next steps. The people conducting the study are responsible for identifying individuals who meet the authorship criteria. Ensuring that all individuals named as authors meet all four criteria is the responsibility of the authors, not the journal. In case of any disagreement in authorship, journal has the right to ask the institution or the relevant ethics committee.
For those who contributed to the research but did not have the authorship criteria, their names should only mention in the "acknowledgments section".
The corresponding author is the one who is responsible for communicating with the journal during the submission, review and publication process who introduced to journal by the authors. It is necessary to be available and answer the questions in a timely manner. Even after the publication, the corresponding author must respond to the criticisms, requests and ambiguities raised about the article.
Changes to Authorship
Any changes to the list of authors (including any addition, removal, or rearrangement of author names) after submitting the manuscript must be approved by all authors, including those who have been removed. All authors must complete and sign up for an “authorship change form” which provides a reason for the change. The journal reserves the right to review the issues related to authorship and to approve changes in authorship after the manuscript submission.
Artificial intelligence
The journal asks the authors to describe the use of artificial intelligence in their cover letter, also in the submitted article if they use any in the production of their manuscript (language models, chat bots or image generators). Authors should specify in the article, which AIs used, for what reason, and under what title. In this section, the question of AI should given. In addition, AIs such as ChatGPT cannot introduced as authors because they cannot be responsible for the accuracy, integrity and originality of the work, which are part of being an author. Therefore, the authors of the work that use artificial intelligence-based technologies are responsible for any submitted content.
The authors must be able to prove that there is no plagiarism in their manuscripts (in the text or images produced by artificial intelligence). The authors are responsible for the accuracy of all quoted materials and citing them.
It should note that the journal uses the Grammarly software as an AI to check and edit the grammar of written articles.
Conflicts of Interest
Describing how everyone is involved in the planning, writing, editing, and publishing of a scientific work will make people trust the process, research, and the whole article. Awareness about the conflict of interest is just as important as the conflict itself. The journal policy is to clarify all relationships and activities of all members involved in the process of conducting, writing, reviewing and publishing articles (not only authors but also referees, editors and members of the editorial board).
All authors must inform the journal about any kinds of financial, personal, political, or academic "Conflict of Interest that would potentially affect their judgment. Authors preferably asked to fill the disclosure form available through: (https://www.icmje.org)
The editors of this journal are aware of the risk of conflict of interest in manuscript management and asked to disclose potential conflicts with the author (s), if any, to avoid any decisions influenced by relationships with the authors.
The IJRM requires referees to provide a fair assessment. As such, editors must ensure that reviewers do not have a conflict of interest, which prevents reviewers from acting unfairly. When referees are invited to review a manuscript, they are asked to consider any competing interests about the submitted article. The journal asks the reviewers to refrain from reviewing a paper if there is any conflict. Also, reviewers are prohibited from using the article they are reviewing before its publication for their own benefit.
Journal staff who participate in editorial decisions must provide chief editor with a current description of their relationships and activities (as they might relate to editorial judgments) and recuse themselves from any decisions in which an interest that poses a potential conflict exists. Editorial staff should not use information obtained through working with manuscripts for personal gain.
Editors will publish their own and their journal's staff disclosure statements, if any.
Clinical Trial Registration
According to the ICMJE recommendation, a Clinical Trial is any research study that assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes.
Authors should register their trial in one of the ICMJE-recognized trial registries (approved by WHO) on or before the first participant registration such as:
The authors are responsible for explaining any discrepancy between the registered information and the published article. If the results of the study are limited in the form of a structured summary or tables, the journal will not consider it as a redundant publication, provided that all publication ethics standards are met.
All the Iranian Clinical Trials must be registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials, in order to be considered for publication.
Ethics of Scientific Publishing
Duplicate Submission
Submission of a paper implies that it reports unpublished work and that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Manuscripts that are found to have been submitted, or under review elsewhere, will considered as duplicate submission.
Duplicate Publication
Manuscripts that have been published (in one or more languages) elsewhere with the same intellectual materials without citation to the published paper will be considered as duplicate publication. If authors have used their own previously published work or work that is currently under review, as the basis for a submitted manuscript, they are required to cite the previous work and indicate how their submitted manuscript offers novel contributions beyond those of the previous work. Previous publication of a preliminary report (letter to editor, preprint, congress abstract or poster) are not considered as Duplicate publication.
In case of using previous published tables, illustrations or text, this should be clearly indicated in the manuscript and the copyright holder's permission must be obtained. Previously published material can be cited in a later review or commentary article, but it must be indicated using quotation marks if necessary.
Selective reporting of data
Selective reporting of data is inappropriate, especially if unreported data are in disagreement with the findings of the selectively reported data. In accordance with the ICJME, the IJRM supports the publication of negative data. Authors should cite publications in the literature that are relevant to the research and should be including publications by others, as well as of their own research group.
Scientific Misconducts
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is copying text, ideas, images, or data from another source without crediting the original source. If the text is copied from another source, it should be placed between quotation marks and refer to the original source. If the study design is inspired by previous studies, this should be explicitly mentioned.
All submissions will check with iThenticate Professional Plagiarism Prevention software. If plagiarism detect during the review process or after publication, the paper may be rejected or retracted. We follow COPE policies in this field. The plagiarism check will perform in two stages; immediately after the submission of a manuscript and before publishing.
Data fabrication/falsification
Data fabrication and falsification mean unauthorized creation, presentation, or reporting of research data with the intent of deceiving the academic community are highly unethical and are an example of publication misconducts. If fabrication/falsification is detected during the review process or after publication, the paper may be rejected or retracted. We follow COPE policies in this field.
Image manipulation
According to IJRM policies, any manipulation of the images in such a way as to lead to a misinterpretation of the information provided by the original image is unethical and not accepted. If image manipulation is detected during the review process or after publication, the paper may be rejected or retracted. We follow COPE policies in this field.
Types of Papers
It is a report of clinical or experimental surgical investigation/comprising of 3000 words with up to 5 illustrations/tables and 30 references.
A comprehensive review of a timely, important clinical subject along with analysis of the topic by the author leading to conclusions, and this should comprising of 5000 words with at least 60 references
New/interesting/very rare cases can be reported. Cases with clinical significance or implications will be given priority. It should be 800-1200 words, 2 illustrations and 10-15 references.
It is a report of clinical or experimental surgical investigation comprising of 1500 words and 15 references.
Guidelines for Preparation of Manuscript
General principles
Manuscript Format
The format of the IJRM manuscripts, including tables, references, and figure legends must be typewritten, on A4 paper, with margins of 2.5. cm. Pages should be numbered consecutively, beginning with the title page and continuing through the last page of typewritten material. Avoid underlining.
Articles that report original research must follow the IMRAD structure (Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Discussion). Other types of studies, such as meta-analyses, case reports, narrative reviews, and editorials, require different parameters, which are explained in detail below.
Manuscript Length
Papers should be of a length appropriate for the amount of information they contain. Failure to restrict the length of manuscripts can negatively influence the editor's decisions.
Reporting guidelines
Considering that reporting guidelines are currently available for study designs, IJRM encourages authors to follow these guidelines in writing their articles. For example: CONSORT for randomized clinical trials, STROBE for observational studies, PRISMA for systematic reviews and meta-analyses, and STARD for diagnostic accuracy studies. The best sources for these guidelines are Equator Network and NLM Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives. Following the guidelines helps authors describe studies in sufficient detail to be evaluated by reviewers, editors, readers, and other researchers.
Cover Letter and License Agreements
The cover letter is an opportunity for authors to persuade the editor to read their article. Please include the following information:
- Highlight the most important findings and the study's novelty.
- Describe the work in 2-3 sentences.
- Explain why the authors think the work is important.
- Do this work match to the journal's scope?
- The authors should write the manuscript is original; have not submitted or published their article elsewhere; and has been seen and approved by all authors involved.
- Suggest preferred and non-preferred reviewers with their names and contact details.
- Certify that all authors are responsible for all parts of the work.
All authors asked to fill and sign a "publishing agreement form" before the article can be processed. IJRM is an open access journal, which published articles under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution non-commercial 4.0 (CC BY-NC 4.0). All articles published in this journal are freely available online for anyone to read, copy, distribute and make derivative works for non-commercial purposes from the material, as long as the author of the original work is cited properly.
By signing this agreement, the authors will have copyright rights but extensive publishing and distribution rights to the publisher, including the right to publish the article on IJRM website and its indexing online/print platforms.
Title Page
The title page must contain: (1) Article title, (2) A running title, (3) Authors information including complete first and last name, highest academic degree and official affiliation, mobile number, e-mail, and Open Researcher and Contributor Identification (ORCID) ID of all authors, (4) Corresponding authors' information such as: email, mailing address, postal code, and telephone number, (5) Any disclaimers, source of supports, article word count, and the number of tables and figures, (6) Any discloser of authors relationships or activities.
Running Title
The author should provide a running title of no more than 5 characters.
Requirements for Different Types of Articles
Original Articles
Style
Manuscripts should be written using clear and concise English. All original research should include Title page; Abstract; Introduction; Materials and Methods; Results; Discussion; Conclusion; Data availability; Author contributions; Acknowledgements; Conflict of interest, and References.
Abstract
All original articles must contain a structured abstract of not more than 250 words. The abstract should include; Background, Objective, Materials and Methods, Results, and Conclusion sections. Also, at least 3-5 specific and relevant Keywords, chosen from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus. should provide. The abstracts should provide the context of the study and its purpose, study methods (study type, participants, setting, and outcomes), main findings, and principal conclusion/s. Authors should ensure that the information mentioned in the abstract and text are consistent with each other.
For clinical trials, abstracts should include items, which has mentioned in CONSORT guideline as essential. The finding source, registration number, and the name of the trial registry must be mentioned at the end of the abstract.
Introduction
This section should provide the backgrounds of the study (the nature of the problem and its significance), state the specified purpose and/or research objective or tested hypothesis or the study observation. It should neither review the subject extensively nor should it have data or conclusions of the study. 450-500 words are recommended.
Materials and Methods
This should include the study type and design and exact method or observation or experiment, definitions such as diagnostic criteria, the study population or samples, and laboratory and statistical methods. If an apparatus is used, its manufacturer's name and address should be given in parenthesis. If the method is established, give a reference but if the method is new, give enough information so that another author is able to perform it.The basic principle in the method section is transparency about how and why to conduct the study in the mentioned method. The method should be presented sufficiently precisely so that others can reproduce the results.
Participants
1) Selecting participants for observational or experimental studies (case and control groups), including the study population, and inclusion and exclusion criteria should be clearly presented.
2) Ensure correct use of the terms sex (when reporting biological factors) and gender (identifying psychological, social, or cultural factors).
3) The sex of the study participants and animals, and the methods used to determine the sex should be described.
4) In case of studying an exclusive population, for example, only one gender, the authors need to justify it.
5) The method of determining generation or ethnicity should be defined and their relationship should be justified. If there is no reporting in this case, the authors should explain why this was not done.
Please use neutral, accurate and respectful language to describe the participants in the study and avoid the use of terms that may stigmatize the participants, for example, patient.
Technical information
It is necessary to explain the followings completely and accurately:
1) Primary and secondary outcomes
2) Methods and equipment used (mentioning the name and address of the manufacturer in parentheses) with sufficient details to the extent that it can be repeated.
3) Drugs and chemicals, including names, generic names, doses and methods of administration
4) Full description of the methods used in the study
Sample size
Provide all the information about the sample size determination in a separate section under the title of sample size.
- How was the sample size determined?
- When applicable, explanation of any interim analysis and stopping guidelines?
- Which formula was used?
- Did you consider the percentage of errors (α and β) and sample loss?
Ethical consideration
This section should include information about the independent local, regional or national ethics committee name which approve the proposal, the code related to its approval, and the ethical consideerations in the research (for example: how to obtain informed consent, confidentiality, etc.). In case of doubt regarding the compliance of the study with the Declaration of Helsinki, the authors should explain the reason for their approach and show that the local, regional and national review committee has clearly approved the questionable aspects of the study. In addition, it is mandatory to send the approval of the ethics committee when submitting the article.
Statistical Analysis
Statistical methods must be describe in details such as:
State which statistical software package you used, including version and manufacturer.
State what kinds of data you have, categorical or numerical.
Explain how you expressed your data.
Describe the tests for normality that you performed.
Indicate which test of normality you used.
State which statistical analyses you used to analyze all your data. If possible, present the results quantitatively with appropriate indicators of measurement error or uncertainty (such as confidence intervals). Relying solely on hypothesis testing such as p-values cannot provide important information about effect size and accuracy of estimates and is not recommended.
Virtually every statistical analysis section includes a description of the level of statistical significance
Define statistical terms, abbreviations, and symbols.
Inadequate or incorrect information can cause rejection or delays in the review process.
Results
This part should contain the relevant findings in a logical order, using tables and figures when needed. Start with the key findings, avoiding repetition between tables and text. Highlight crucial observations without redundancy. Include data on primary and secondary outcomes mentioned in the Methods section. Additional or supplementary details can be provided in an attached file for readers' access to be published only in the electronic version of the Journal. Long articles may need sub-headings within some sections (especially the Results and Discussion parts) to clarify their contents. Use absolute numerical values from data analysis instead of vague descriptions. Utilize charts for large datasets rather than extensive tables. Ensure precise use of statistical terms like “random” (which implies a randomizing device), “normal”, “significant correlation”, and “sample”. Organize data separately by demographic variables such as age and gender, unless stratification bias needs clarification. Simply stating percentages without detailed result derivatives may not suffice.
Discussion
It is recommended to start this section by summarizing the main findings and analyzing the mechanisms or potential causes behind them. The discussion should emphasize the present findings and the variations or similarities with other research done in this field. The limitations and strengths of the study should be stated and the consequences of the findings should be explained for future research or clinical policies. There is no need to repeat the data or other information provided in other parts of the manuscript, such as the introduction or detailed results. Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that follow from them.
Conclusion
Conclusions should align with the research objectives and be supported by the research findings. Avoid making statements and conclusions that are not adequately supported by the data. In particular, distinguish between clinical and statistical significance and refrain from expressing opinions on benefits and economic costs unless the manuscript includes appropriate data and economic analysis. Refrain from claiming priority or referring to incomplete work. . New hypotheses can be mentioned if necessary, provided that they are clearly described as new hypotheses. Should state the final results that the author(s) has (have) reached. The results of other studies should not be stated in this section.
Data availability
Refer to the data availability section
Author contributions
All authors bear full responsibility for the content published in their articles (refer to the authors section). Contributors who do not meet all 4 authorship criteria should not be listed as authors but acknowledged. IJRM requests authors to provide comprehensive information on each individual's involvement credited as an author to prevent ambiguity in discussing people's participation in the study. Individuals not meeting authorship criteria but contributing to the study can be recognized in the Acknowledgment section.
Acknowledgements
Financial and material support should be mentioned in this section. Individuals not meeting authorship criteria but contributing to the study can be recognized in the “Acknowledgment” section. The organization or institution that has paid the financial costs of the research or has had a financial contract to help with the research in some way must be informed in this section by mentioning the grant number, if any.
Conflicts of interest
All connections and actions of authors throughout the planning, execution, writing, revising, and publishing of a scientific work that could influence their professional judgment must be clearly explained. Having a relationship or involvement doesn't always mean a negative impact on the article's content. Readers should assess the relevance of these connections and activities to the article. Transparency through full disclosure by authors shows a dedication to openness and helps uphold trust in the scientific process. For details, refer to the “Conflict of Interest” section on the ICMJE website. Authors need to disclose any funding sources and potential conflicts of interest, like receiving funds, fees, or holding stocks in an organization that may benefit or suffer from the publication of their paper.
References
All manuscripts should be accompanied by relevant references. The reference should provide the following information as stated in the presented models as follows:
References should be numbered sequentially as they appear in the text according to the Vancouver Style. When citing authors in the text, acknowledge only the first author where there are three or more authors, e.g. Williams and co-workers (1) stated that.... Where there are two authors cite both, e.g. Jones and Smith (2) reported that... Citations in the reference list are to be arranged by number in the following format including punctuation:
Articles
Author(s). Title of article. Abbreviation of journal title conforms to Index Medicus (in italics with no full stops) Year; Volume (number): Page numbers.
e.g. Salehnia M, Arianmanesh M, Beigi M. The impact of ovarian stimulation on mouse endometrium: A morphometrical study. Int J Reprod BioMed 2020; 1: 11-17.
Books
Author(s). Title: sub-title. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher; Year.
e.g. Speroof L, Robert H. Clinical gynaecology endocrinology & infertility. 6th Ed. Philadelphia; Robert-D; 1999.
Chapter in a book
Author(s) of the chapter. Title: sub-title of the chapter. In: Author(s) (or editors) of the book. Title: sub-title of book. Place of publication: Publisher; Year; page numbers.
Inclusive page numbers should be given for all references. Write surnames and initials of all authors when there are six or fewer. In the case of seven or more authors, the names of the first six authors followed by et al should be listed.
References to papers accepted for publication, but not yet published, should be cited as such in the reference list e.g. Mohammad Kazem Gharib Naseri M, Mohammadian M, Gharib Naseri Z. Antispasmodic effect of Physalis alkekengi fruit extract on rat uterus, Iran J Reprod Med 2008, in press.
All authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the references and for their correct textual citation.
Tables
The tables effectively summarize research findings by providing detailed and accurate information concisely. Using tables instead of text can help reduce the document's length. Tables should be numbered sequentially in Roman numerals with self-explanatory titles for easy understanding. Authors should keep table titles short yet informative to allow readers to grasp the content without referring back to the text. The complete form of abbreviations and statistical measures of variables (e.g., mean, standard deviation, standard error, number/percentage) and tests used in each table, along with symbols, must be clarified in the tables' legend.
Write the exact p-value numbers up to two decimal places in all parts of the manuscript. P-values equal to zero (0.00) should be reported as p <0.001. If the numbers are given with more than two digits, round it up.
If you use data from another published or unpublished source, it is imperative to seek permission and provide full acknowledgment of the original source. Supplementary tables containing extensive backup data that cannot be included in the printed version may be suitable for inclusion in the electronic edition of the journal, stored with an archival service, or directly shared with readers by the authors. A clear statement should be incorporated into the text to notify readers about the availability and location of this additional information. These tables should be submitted along with the manuscript for review to ensure accessibility to peer reviewers. It is essential to maintain consistency between the statistical information presented in the tables and the textual data. Avoid submitting tables as images.
Figures and Illustrations
All illustrations must be numbered as cited in the text in consecutive numeric order. Written permission must accompany any photograph in which the subject can be identified or any illustration that has been previously published.
Supplementary Materials such as movie clips, questionnaires, etc may be published on the online version of the journal.
Should be in limited numbers, with high-quality artwork and mounted on separate pages. The captions should be placed below. The same data should not be presented in Tables, figures and text, simultaneously.
Review articles
Review articles should contain at least 60 references and maximum 5000 words and be prepared according to one of the following styles:
- Systematic reviews should adhere to PRISMA (for systematic reviews of RCTs) or MOOSE (for Observational studies) guidelines. Abstract should be structured. Systematic reviews must include a clearly stated set of objectives with reproducible methodology, a systematic search, eligibility criteria for selecting studies, assessment of study quality (risk of bias), an assessment of the validity of the findings and systematic synthesis of these findings. The authors are strongly encouraged to register their review protocol within PROSPERO.
- Nonsystematic reviews (Narrative reviews) should be written by experts contained the critical assessment of the current knowledge of the field. Different parts of these articles include abstract, introduction, discussion and conclusion. Abstract should be non-structured.
Short communication/Brief reports
Short communication/ Brief reports can be in form of research article, systematic review or ongoing research which reports its interesting findings. The parts in this type of articles are like those of original one but they are smaller and prepared in maximum 1500 words. 15 references should be stated.
Letter to the editor
A letter to the editor should be about criticism of previous articles, criticism or review over books, analysis of a related topic with reproductive medicine, expansion and explanation about an idea or a complicated problem. This should be prepared in maximum 500-1000 words. These articles need no structure. authors must meet all requirements regarding responsible conduct of research (e.g., appropriate IRB approval, data integrity, data retention). These submissions are limited to 7 authors, 500 words (not counting the title page, references, or legend) and 5 references and may include only 1 table or 1 figure.
Editorial article
Editorial article should be written by either the editor in chief or the editorial board. The editor in chief could also ask an expert to do such a thing. The context of such articles could involve a deep analysis about the up to date topics in reproductive medicine, challenging systems or proposing solutions in reproductive medicine field. They should be prepared in maximum 2000 words and have at least 5 references.
Case Reports/Case series
Case Reports should include abstract, keywords, case presentation, discussion, acknowledgment (if applicable), references, and 2 illustration. Necessary documentations of the case(s) like pathology reports, laboratory test reports, and images should be included in the submission package. 10-15 references should be stated. Case reports should be written in accordance with the CARE guidelines http://www.care-statement.org. Case reports and case series require informed consent, which should be documented in the paper.
Submission requirements
All authors must sign the “Submission agreement form” before the article can be processed.
All manuscript must be submitted as an electronic submission. The text should be submitted in “Microsoft Word” format. The figures should be sent in a format of JPEG, which will produce high quality images in the online edition of the journal. Submission is acceptable via Journal URL: http://www.ijrm.ir.
A covering letter identifying the responsible person (full name, address, telephone, fax numbers and e-mail) for correspondence concerning the submitted article. Manuscripts are received with the understanding that they are not under simultaneous consideration by another publication. The author’s transmittal letter must accompany the manuscript and contain these statements: “The manuscript has been seen and approved by all authors involved and is neither being published nor being considered for publication elsewhere. The authors transfer copyright to the IJRM.”
Submission checklist
You can use this list to carry out a final check of your submission before sending. Ensure that the following items met:
Full name, initials, ORCID ID, academic degree, academic affiliation, academic email, postal address and cell number of each author
Running title, a maximum of 5 words (40 spaces and letters)
Ethical committee approval letter in English with official letter head
Paper abstract including keywords
Manuscript:
• All figures (include relevant captions)
• All tables (including titles, description, footnotes)
• Ensure all figure and table citations in the text match the files provided
Graphical Abstracts / Highlights files (where applicable)
Supplemental files (where applicable)
• All references mentioned in the Reference List are cited in the text, and vice versa
• Permission has been obtained for use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Internet)
• A competing interests statement is provided, even if the authors have no competing interests to declare
• Journal policies detailed in this guide have been reviewed
• Referee suggestions and contact details provided, based on journal requirements
PREPARATION
The author(s) accept(s) responsibility that the electronic file is complete and accurate upon submission, revision, and acceptance.
Peer-Review process
The submitted manuscripts will be assessed from editorial points of view, at first. If the manuscript meet the basic editorial requirements; it will enter the peer-review process. The manuscript will then be sent at least to one in-office and two out of office referees for review. The corresponding author will then be informed to the referee’s remark to accept, reject or require modification.
Revision: Papers may be returned to authors for modification of the scientific content and/or for language corrections. Revised paper and a letter listing point-for-point response to the reviewers must be submitted to the Editor and must be accompanied by a copy of the original version. Suggestion by the Editor about resubmission does not imply that a revised version will necessarily be accepted. If a paper that is returned to the authors for modification is not resubmitted within two months it will be regarded as having been withdrawn and any revised version received subsequently will be treated as a new paper and the date of receipt will be altered accordingly. Authors who resubmit a paper that has previously been rejected must provide the original manuscript and a letter explaining in detail how the paper has been modified. Accepted manuscripts become the property of IJRM.
Proofs: A computer printout will be sent to the corresponding author to be checked for only typographical errors and other essential small changes before publication in order to avoid any mistakes. Major alternations to the text cannot be accepted at this stage. Proofs must be returned to the editor within 2 days of receipt.
Archiving Policy
The articles published by IJRM are archived on our website and also in multiple international databases around the world to increase visibility and long-term digital preservation. Also, An offline digital file is considered separately for each article
These archives include:
In an open-access model, the publication costs of an article are paid from an author's research budget, or by their supporting institution, in the form of Article Processing Charges (APC). These APC replace subscription charges and allow publishers to make the full-text of every published article freely available to all interested readers. IJRM is an open access journal. Publishing an article in IJRM requires APC that will be billed to the submitting author following the acceptance of an article for publication. Apart from these APC, there are no submission charges, page charges, or color charges. The fees to be paid following the acceptance of an article are indicated below from July 1, 2022:
| Type of Article |
For Home Country Authors/Institutions |
For International Authors/Institutions |
| Review and Original |
12,000,000 IRR |
312 USD |
| Short Communication and Case Report |
8,000,000 IRR |
272 USD |
| Letter to Editor |
3,000,000 IRR |
252 USD |
Notes:
- The account number for home country authors/Institutions is or Shaba: IR670100004001085403022850 and Card Number (366085472125500004120510000000) Tejarat Bank.
- For International Authors/Institutions, details will be sent via email.
- Please send a scanned copy of your receipt via Ijrmyazdyahoo.com.
To facilitate a speedy turn-around when a rapid decision is required IJRM offers a fast review model (Fast Track). If you choose the fast-track review model, you are guaranteed:
- A rapid editorial decision and peer-review comments within 28-45 working days after submission and payment of the fast-track processing charge.
- Follow the instructions for fast tract payment as below:
| Type of Article |
For Home Country Authors/Institutions |
For International Authors/Institutions |
| Review and Original |
25,000,000 IRR |
300 USD |
| Short Communication and Case Report |
15,000,000 IRR |
200 USD |
Note:
- The fast track evaluation charges have no relevance to the acceptance or rejection of the manuscript.
- If your manuscript is rejected by editorial and peer-review comments in the reviewing process, the payment will not be refunded.
- If the manuscript is accepted in fast track process, the author has to pay general APC fees.
Waivers and discounts
IJRM offer waivers for Article Processing Charge (25-50% discount based on the editor-in-chief opinion) where all authors are based in low-income countries.
Advertisements
IJRM accepts advertisements according to the rules of the Iranian Ministry of Health. The editor has full authority to approve print and online advertisements as well as the advertising policy in this journal. The journal is not responsible for external links or external sites provided in advertisements. The journal does not endorse the content, advertisements, products or other materials available on the websites in question and does not take responsibility for those sites and the availability of those sites.
You can send any complaints about advertising to: ijrmyazdyahoo.com
Data Sharing
IJRM encourages authors to share the data and other supplementary files supporting the results in the paper by archiving it in an appropriate public repository. According to IJRM policies, authors should provide a "data availability statement" that describes the availability or lack of availability of shared data (with reason) and a link to the shared data repository used. Scripts and other artifacts used to generate the analyses presented in the paper should also be publicly archived. If, for any reason, sharing data compromises ethical standards or legal requirements, authors are not expected to share it and can make it clear to readers why in their paper.
IJRM is committed to publishing impactful research results with reproducibility, valid data, and standard and ethical methods. We encourage authors to share their research data, including raw data, processed data, used software, algorithms, protocols, methods, and materials.
Here is a list of standard templates for the text listed in the "Data Availability Statement" section of articles that authors can use in their papers:
- Data supporting the findings of this study are publicly available at [repository name] at http://doi.org/[doi], reference number [reference number].
- Data supporting the findings of this study are publicly available at [repository name] at [URL], reference number [reference number].
- Data supporting the findings of this study are available at [repository name] at [URL/DOI], reference number [reference number]. This data is derived from the following sources available in the public domain: [source list and URL]
- Data supporting the findings of this study are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.
- Research data is not shared.
Exceptions to this policy and restrictions on data availability related to protecting human privacy, issues such as biosafety, and compliance with terms of use for data obtained under the license of third parties. Confidential data, for example, human or patient data, must always be anonymized, or permission must be obtained for sharing. Authors should seek advice from their institution's ethics committee when in doubt.
As of July 2018, all ICMJE member journals that publish the results of clinical trials that began enrolling participants on or after January 2019 must include a data-sharing plan at the time of trial registration. If for any reason the data sharing plan changes after registration, it should be mentioned in a separate statement, sent to the journal along with the transcript, and updated in the registration history.
Authors who wish to write a secondary analysis using shared data must state that their use has been in accordance with the terms and conditions agreed to at the time the data shared. They should also refer to the source of the data using its unique and permanent identifier to give credit to the people who produced the data and to enable searching for the studies.
Preprints
Preprints in platforms that clearly identify as non-peer-reviewed work and include disclosure of the authors' relationships, activities, and research funding sources will be accepted. If the submitted paper has already been published as a preprint, the authors must inform the journal and specify at the end of introduction section and how to access (mention the preprint link and the DOI number). Authors should also ensure that preprints guide readers to subsequent versions, including the final published article (once your paper has been published update your preprint with this text: the original manuscript of an article has been published in IJRM, which is available online at ….. with DOI:…..). Authors should not submit published articles or interim versions created during the reviewing process and include revisions based on journal feedback in preprint format for display.
How to cite a preprint: When referring to a preprint, the citation must clearly indicate that the cited reference is a preprint.
Confidentiality
The Editor(s) and the editorial staff will take all reasonable steps to preserve the confidentiality of the authors’ and reviewers’ identities. They must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.
Submit an appeal
IJRM journal receives readers' comments, questions and criticisms about published articles through email (ijrmyazdyahoo.com). Authors of published articles are responsible for answering criticisms of their works. Our editorial team may decide to publish these comments or not. Entries may be edited due to detailed grammatical accuracy, journal style, or defamatory.
Corrections, retractions, and updates after publication
Sometimes, after the publication of an article, it may be necessary to change the article due to reasons determined by the journal's editor, one of the reviewers, or readers, or at the request of the authors themselves. This is done after careful review by the editor to ensure that the necessary changes are made by the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Any changes will be accompanied by a post-publication notice permanently and a link is made to the original published article to help the reader see both the correction note and the article itself. This can be in the form of an erratum, corrigendum, or retraction notes. The purpose of this mechanism is to make permanent and transparent changes, to ensure the integrity of scientific records.
In case of infringements of professional, and ethical issues, such as multiple submissions, bogus claims of authorship, duplication, plagiarism, fraudulent use of data, or the like that are determined to violate IJRM ethics guidelines, a retraction will be used to correct errors in published articles.
Submit manuscripts to: http://www.ijrm.ir
Journal Address:
International Journal of Reproductive BioMedicine,
Research & Clinical Center for Infertility,
Bouali Ave, Safayeh, Yazd, Iran. P.O. Box, 89195-999
Tel: +98(35)38248348
Fax: +98(35)38248087
Email: ijrmssu.ac.ir
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