Aim and Scope

FBCommunication publishes Hot Topics in…Series giving medical doctors, health care workers, and every concerned person up-to-date and comprehensive information about major topics in various medical fields. Issues focus on different aspects of a major topic, and each article is an original paper written by leading experts in their field. The scope is to lead the specialist and the general practitioner alike to a critical appreciation of real-life, clinical situations, in order to help during the diagnoses and treatment, especially in situations that do not fit the "typical" pattern as commonly reported by multicenter, clinical trials.

Types of Articles Accepted

The Editor-in-Chief of each Hot Topics in… series is responsible for the selection of authors and titles regarding the specific topic of the monographs. Articles are generally solicited and must regard up-to-date clinical information about the journal’s medical field; authors have to be specialists in the specific area.

Conflict of Interest/Ethical Issues

Authors must declare any conflict of interest, as well as editorial or financial assistance regarding the preparation of the article. A clear statement of patient confidentially issues, copyright transfer policies, and ethical issues in research is also required.

Authors’ Declaration

It is the authors’ responsibility to state the originality of the material, which cannot be previously published or submitted elsewhere. Each listed author must have contributed in the preparation of the article.

Contract Details

Each author or group of authors will sign an individual contract with FBCommunication settling the remuneration for published manuscripts.

Addresses for Submission

Articles that are not accepted for publication will not be returned. Electronic formats are required, and should be sent with an introductory letter to: editorial@fbcomummunication.org
OR FBCommunication Srl Via Mascherella 19 41121 Modena, Italy

Review Process

Since Hot Topics in… articles are solicited, they are not peer-reviewed. The Editor-in-Chief of each series chooses the main subject of the issue and drafts a preliminary table-of-contents and a list of renowned potential authors. These authors, who are specialists in the related field, are then invited to write original papers. Any changes must be discussed with the Editor-in-Chief, who also checks the final manuscript and gives ultimate approval.

Editorial Standards

Full-Length Papers The manuscript must be typed in English with Microsoft Office Word software and must respect the standards of the American Medical Association Manual of Style. Articles shall consist of the number of pages reported in the contract, and pages should be of 2000 characters each (or 300 words each), all inclusive (tables, illustrations, flow-charts, references) as specified in Clause 1, Point a of the contract. Illustrations The monographs are printed in b/w plus an additional color. The manuscript will include the number of illustrations (figures and tables) specified in the author’s contract (Clause 1, Point a), and authors must provide original sources and copyright permission for reprinted or adapted material. With exclusion of x-rays or other b/w photos, all the illustrations will be redrawn by our designer. Illustrations must be included in a separate file. All figures and tables must be cited in text and will be placed as close to the citation as possible. Abbreviations Apart from standard units of measure, abbreviations and acronyms must be defined in text, tables, and figures at their first use. Abstracts and Keywords Authors must provide an abstract for each article, as well as a list of related keywords. Abstracts must not exceed 150 words and should be structured following the headings: Background, Methods, Results. Headings The first level heading should appear in bold, capital letters. Second level is bold, initial capital letter. Third level is bold, initial capital, run in to paragraph. Fourth is bold, italic, initial capital run in to paragraph. References References should be credited to the original sources and be in numerical order in the text. The number should appear in square brackets on the line and should be typed and numbered in the same order at the end of the manuscript.

The references need to be in Microsoft Word format and respect the following standards:

• Journal Articles
  Names of up to 6 authors with initials (7 authors or more should be abbreviated to et al after the third author’s name)
  Title of article and subtitle, if any Abbreviated name of journal (according to Index Medicus see http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/serials/lji.html) in italicsYear;volume number:first-last page numbers
  Smith JC, Jones AB. Title of article. N Engl J Med 2009;44(2, suppl 2):99-101.
• Book
  Names of up to 6 authors with initials (7 or more use et al)
  Title of book and subtitle, if any (in italics)
  Volume number and volume title, when there is more than 1 volume
  Edition (do not indicate first edition)
  Place of publication Name of publisher
  Year
  Page numbers, when specific pages are cited
  Simon LS, Lipman AG, Jacob AK, et al. Pain in Osteoarthritis. 2^nd ed. Glenview, IL: American Pain Society; 2002.
• Chapter from a Book
  Names of 6 authors with initials (7 or more use et al)
  Chapter title and subtitle, if any
  In: editors’ names with initials (eds)
  Title of book and subtitle, if any (in italics)
  Volume number
  Edition
  Place of publication
  Name of publisher
  Year: first-last page numbers
  Solensky R. Drug allergy: desensitization and treatment of reactions to antibiotics and aspirin. In: Lockey P, ed. Allergens and Allergen Immunotherapy. 3 ^rd ed. New York, NY: Marcel Dekker; 2004:585-606.

Authors personal data

Last modification: November 2011