Guide for Authors

An International Journal
The Official Journal of the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals and the Society of Family Planning

Editorial Policies

Contraception invites concise reports of original research in the experimental and clinical aspects of all areas of contraception. The purpose of this journal is to provide a medium for the rapid communication of advances and new knowledge in this important field. The Editor anticipates receiving manuscripts from workers in the following areas of research: chemistry, biochemistry, physiology, endocrinology, biology, the medical sciences, and demography. Publication of original papers within 90 days of manuscript receipt is planned. Authors will be advised of disposition of the manuscript within 30 days of receipt.

Manuscript Submission Process ONLINE

All manuscripts must be submitted electronically through the Elsevier Editorial System website (www.ees. elsevier.com/contraception). Select: "New Manuscript". Author guidance is provided for creating and uploading all files and data. The system automatically generates an electronic (PDF) proof, which is then sent to the Editorin-Chief and to designated reviewers. All correspondence about submitted manuscripts also will be handled by e-mail through the EES.

The requirement for manuscripts submitted to Contraception conform to the "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals" established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors and published in Annals of Internal Medicine 1988; 108:258-65.

Trial and research guidelines. The following guidelines must be adhered to when formulating the study. Upon submission of the manuscript, authors are to indicate the type of trial/research used on the Author Checklist.

• Randomized controlled trials. Authors are to consult the CONSORT statement. (Moher D, Schulz KF, Altman D, for the CONSORT Group. The CONSORT Statement: Revised recommendations for improving the quality of reports of parallel-group randomized trials. JAMA 2001;285:1987-91) A flow-chart as a figure must be submitted with the manuscript. www.consort-statement.org
• Meta-analysis and systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials. Authors are to consult the QUOROM statement. (Moher D, Cook DJ, Eastwood S, Olkin I, Rennie D, Stroup DF. Improving the quality of reports of meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials: the QUOROM statement. Quality of Reporting of Meta-Analyses. Lancet 1999;354:1896-900.) www.thelancet.com
• Meta-analysis and systematic review of observational studies. Authors are to consult the MOOSE guidelines. (Stroup DF, Berlin JA, Morton SC, et. al., for the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) group. Meta-analysis of observational studies in epidemiology: A proposal for reporting. JAMA 2000;283:2008-12." www.jama.ama-assn.org
• Diagnostic tests. Authors are to consult the STARD Initiative. (Bossuyt, PM, Reitsma, JB, Bruns, DE, et. al. Towards complete and accurate reporting of studies of diagnostic accuracy: The STARD Initiative. Clin Chem 2003;49:1-6.) www.clinchem.org

Previous publication. If a report by the same author(s) has been previously published in any medium that deals in any respect whatever with the same patients, same animals, same laboratory experiments, or same data, in part or in full, as those reported in the manuscript being submitted, two reprints of the article or two copies of the manuscript, be it a full-length report or an abstract, must be submitted with the manuscript. The author(s) should inform the Editor of the circumstances, similarities, and differences of the reports. This requirement also applies to the submission of a manuscript in which a few different patients, animals laboratory experiments, or data were added to those reported in a previous publication or in a submitted or accepted manuscript. Articles previously published in another language will not be considered.

Human and animal experimentation. It is assumed by the Editor that manuscripts emanating from a particular institution are submitted with the approval of the requisite authority. Human experimentation that requires local institutional approval must have this approval before the experiment is started and approval must be so indicated in the Methods section of the submitted manuscript. Reports of experiments on animals must state in the Methods section of the manuscript that the guidelines for the care and use of the animals approved by the local institution were followed. The species of nonhuman animals must be named in the title, abstract, and key words of the manuscript.

Authorship. For manuscripts with two or more authors, each author must qualify by having participated actively and sufficiently in the study that is being performed and reported. The inclusion of each author in the authorship list of a report is based only (1) on substantial contributions to (a) concept and design, or analysis and interpretation of data and (b) drafting the manuscript or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and (2) on final approval by each author of the version of the manuscript. Conditions 1 (a and b) and 2 must both be met. Others contributing to the work should be recognized separately in an Acknowledgment. In the covering letter that accompanies the submitted manuscript, it must be confirmed that all authors fulfilled both conditions.

English language manuscripts should be sent directly to: Shirley Davenport, Contraception Editorial Office, 25313 Via Calinda, Valencia, CA 91355, USA; Tel: 661-259-9566; Fax: 661-255-1480. Authors outside the United States should address manuscripts to a corresponding editors in their own country. Authors in countries not represented by a corresponding editors should send their manuscripts directly to the Editor in California.

Preparation of Manuscripts. The electronic manuscript, tables, and figures must be submitted to the Journal at www.ees.elsevier.com/contraception. Submit figures online in a separate file in EPS, JPEG, or TIFF format (minimum 300 dpi). Figures should not be embedded in the manuscript document. If a figure has been previously published, by you or by others, obtain permission and acknowledge fully in the figure legend. Remove all patient identifying marks (Protection of Patients' Rights to Privacy).

Manuscripts must be typed double-spaced. Also include five or six keywords and a short running title.

A manuscript length of 5-9 pages, including tables, figures, and references is suggested. Where warranted, longer papers may be accepted.

Title Page. The text of the article should include the following: a STRUCTURED ABSTRACT (with the following subheadings: Background, Study Design, Results, Conclusions) (approximately 150 words) INTRODUCTION, MATERIALS and METHODS, RESULTS, DISCUSSION, and ACKNOWLEDGMENT/ NOTES.

Text. The text of the article should include the following: ABSTRACT (approximately 150 words), INTRODUCTION, MATERIALS and METHODS, RESULTS, DISCUSSION, and ACKNOWLEDGMENT/FOOTNOTES (this is where the author name and address for reprint requests should be listed).

Figures. All figures (photographs, drawings, diagrams, charts) should be clear, easily legible and cited consecutively by Arabic numerals in the text (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.). Legends should contain sufficient detail to permit figure interpretation without reference to the text. Units should be indicated in the figures. The cost of color reproduction in the print journal is $400 for the first figure on a page. The cost for each additional color figure on the page is $150. Multi-part figures are considered one figure. All color figures will appear on the web site (www.contraceptionjournal.org) at no cost to the authors.

Tables. Tables must be concise, as simple as possible, and cited consecutively by Arabic numerals in the text (Table 1, Table 2, etc.). Each table should be titled and submitted as a separate file. The title of each table should clearly indicate the nature of the contents. Sufficient detail should be included in the table footnote to facilitate interpretation.

References. References must adhere to the specifications of the "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals" promulgated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors.

References are numbered consecutively in the order in which they appear in the text. Citations should be on the line of text enclosed in brackets and the period or comma should follow the reference at the end of the sentence.

Each reference must be cited. Referenced articles must have been published in peer-review publications that are generally accessible. Unpublished data, personal communications, papers presented at meetings and symposia, abstracts, and manuscripts "submitted for publication" are not acceptable as references. Information from such sources may be cited, if necessary, in the text with the sources given in parentheses (e.g., unpublished observations). Papers "in press" may be cited, but must include the journal title, Digital Object Identifier (DOI) and year (if known). Books must include the publisher and year of publication (if known).

References should be listed in numerical order in the Reference Section, immediately following the Acknowledgments section. Reference numbers should be enclosed in brackets, with no period after the brackets. Journal names should be abbreviated according to the style of MEDLINE, National Library of Medicine. Please note that no periods are used after the authors' initials or after journal abbreviations. "et al." is used when there are more than six authors. There is a period at the end of each reference. The type and punctuation of references consistent with the "Uniform Requirements" are illustrated as follows:

Journal article, up to six authors:
List all authors when six or fewer.
Baskett TF, Allen AC, Gray JH, Young DC, Young LM. Fetal biophysical profile and perinatal death. Obstet Gynecol 1987;70:357-60.

Journal article, more than six authors:
List only the first three and add "et al." when seven or more.
Pollack MM, Getson PR, Ruttimann UE, et al. Efficacy of intensive care. JAMA 1987;258:1481-6.

Books:
Pritchard JA, MacDonald PC, Gant NF. Williams obstetrics. 17th ed. Norwalk, CT: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1985.

Chapter in a book:
Roberts ADG, Denholm RB. Changes in cervical collagen with age. In: Chamberlain G, editor. Contemporary obstetrics and gynaecology. London: Butterworths, 1988. p. 259-71.

Edited book:
Creasy RK, Resnik R, editors. Maternal fetal medicine. Philadelphia: WB Saunders, 1984.

Contribution to a previously cited book:
Stirrat GM. Aids to obstetrics and gynecology. 2nd ed.² 3-31.

Book with a volume number:
Lees DH, Singer A. Abdominal operations for benign conditions. Chicago: Year Book, 1978: 1-288. (Lees DH, Singer A. Color atlas of gynecological surgery; vol 2).

Letters to the Editor. This section of the journal is set aside for critical comments directed to a specific article that has recently been published in the journal. Letters should be brief (400 words), double-spaced, and limited to a maximum of 5 citations. The letters and replies should be prepared according to journal format. Illustrative material is accepted only with permission of the Editor. With your correspondence, please include your complete mailing address, telephone and fax numbers, and E-mail address is available.

The Editor reserves the right to shorten letters, delete objectionable comment, and make other changes to comply with the style of the journal. Submit your letters on line to http://www.ees.elsevier.com/contraception .

Guidelines for the Submission of Electronic Manuscripts

Please note that all manuscripts and revisions should be submitted electronically.

1) Please send papers in MS Word format or a compatible program.

2) All design considerations for typefaces, page layout, and artwork will be handled by the publisher after receipt of the electronic manuscript. There is no need for the author to input special typesetting codes. Please avoid extra formatting (such as centering heads), embedding footnotes in a hidden field, or using a bibliographic or footnote format for reference lists.

3) Be especially sure to distinguish between the letter O and I and the number 0 and 1, respectively.

4) A "hard return" results from tapping the keyboard's Enter key. Use a hard return only to end a paragraph, or for titles, subheads, separate items on a list, etc. Rely on the program's soft return within paragraphs, list items, etc.

5) Use your word processor's capabilities for the following text attributes:

a) bold
b) underline and italic
c) subscript
d) superscript
e) strikeout

Text that will be italic in published form may be keyboarded italic or underlined.

6) Do not use your word processor's hyphenation capabilities. Do not right justify text. Use two hyphens for en-dashes; 3 hyphens for em-dashes.

Any questions regarding contributions to Contraception should be directed to Shirley Davenport in the editorial office: Telephone: (661)259-9566;E-mail: dmishell@yahoo.com