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Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada

Submit your articleGuide for authors

Guide for authors

Guide des auteurs (PDF, in French)

ABOUT THE JOURNAL

The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada (JOGC) is the monthly peer-reviewed journal of the Society for Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC).

1. AIMS AND SCOPE

The JOGC publishes original research, reviews, case reports, and brief communications by authors from around the world on topics of clinical significance to obstetrics, gynaecology, and women's health at all life stages. Articles are accepted in either of Canada's official languages, French and English.

The Journal also publishes SOGC evidence-based clinical guidelines, committee opinions, and policy statements in French and English. All editorials, images of the month and excerpts from the world medical literature columns, are also published in French and English, as are all article abstracts. The JOGC is indexed in PubMed/Medline, Scopus, and the Web of Science's Emerging Sources Citation Index.

2. GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND ETHICS

2.1 Editorial standards and ethical considerations for manuscripts

Publication in a peer-reviewed journal reflects directly on the quality of the work of authors and the institutions that support them.

The JOGC is committed to preserving integrity, building trust in credible research, and promoting the principles of academic freedom and editorial independence. To accomplish this goal, the JOGC subscribes to internationally accepted guidelines and recommendations and expects all authors submitting to the journal to be familiar with and adhere to:

2.2 Non-human and human research

The focus of the JOGC is matters of clinical significance for practitioners in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology. As a result, only animal studies with direct clinical implications will be considered for publication.

All authors whose research involves human participants must be familiar with and adhere to the applicable ethical, legal and scientific standards and principles underpinning such work.

If you are not familiar with these guidelines, policies and recommendations, please take the time to review them.

2.3 Indexing

The JOGC is indexed in PubMed/Medline, Scopus, and the Web of Science's Emerging Sources Citation Index.

2.4 Clinical trials

All randomized controlled trials must be registered in ClinicalTrials.gov or a primary registry in the WHO Registry Network before the trial begins and participants are enrolled.

Present randomized controlled trials according to the CONSORT 2010 guideline.

When submitting your manuscript, you must provide the CONSORT checklist (Word version available on CONSORT site) and CONSORT flow diagram, which illustrates the progress of patients through the trial from enrolment to completion of the trial.

2.5 Systematic reviews

The JOGC requires early registration of all systematic reviews and meta-analyses in PROSPERO, the international prospective register of systematic reviews. Early registration is defined as prior to commencement of data extraction but after completion of the review protocol.

2.6 Reporting guidelines for main study types

Visit the Equator Network homepage for access to the reporting guidelines for the main types of studies in health research. You can also find reporting guidelines by study type, clinical area, and report section using the reporting guidelines search tool.

2.7 Guidelines for study design, strength of evidence

  • CONSORT - Randomized controlled trials
  • GRADE - Systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials and observational studies
  • PRISMA - Systematic reviews and meta-analyses
  • SQUIRE - Quality improvement research
  • STROBE - Observational studies
  • STARD - Guideline for reporting diagnostic accuracy

2.8 Plagiarism

The JOGC uses iThenticate plagiarism-checking software on all manuscripts to identify potential plagiarism, including self-plagiarism. Ensure that all necessary content is appropriately attributed and that the paper is your original work. Any evidence of plagiarism will be addressed first with the authors and then, if necessary, with their institution.

2.9 Authorship

Contributors must fulfill all four ICMJE criteria for authorship in order to be listed as an author:

  1. Make substantial contributions to the conception or design of the study and acquisition, analysis, and/or interpretation of data, and
  2. Participate in drafting or revising the manuscript, and
  3. Approve the version to be published, and
  4. Agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work and any issues related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work.

Any contributors who do not meet all four criteria cannot be listed as authors; however, they should be acknowledged via a statement in the article. This statement must be included on the submission cover page. Because acknowledgement may imply endorsement of a study's data or conclusions, the Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to ask for written permission from acknowledged individuals.

2.9.1 Corresponding author
The author identified as the corresponding author has primary responsibility for submission and communication with the journal and handles the journal's administrative requirements, including providing details of ethics committee approval and any clinical trial registration documentation. It is important for the corresponding author to be available from submission to completion of the peer review process as well as after publication to respond to any queries, questions or critiques of the article.

3. OPEN ACCESS

The Journal's publisher, Elsevier, offers gold open access. Visit the JOGC open access page for more information.

Some of Canada's research funding agencies have funding available to authors/researchers to offset some or all of the open access fees.

4. DISCLOSURE OF FINANCIAL AND NON-FINANCIAL RELATIONSHIPS AND ACTIVITIES

The credibility of scientific articles depends in part on the transparency of authors' financial and non-financial relationships and activities. Perceptions of conflict of interest are sometimes as important as actual conflicts of interest and can erode trust in the scientific process.

The JOGC is committed to transparency and expects all authors to be familiar with the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals.

Every submission must include a completed ICMJE disclosure statement (PDF download) for each author, even when there are no relationships or activities to disclose. These documents will be retained by the JOGC but not published.

In addition to including the completed author disclosure forms with the submission, the corresponding author must also provide a brief disclosure statement reporting relationships and activities, or the absence of same for publication in the article.

5. SUBMISSION TYPES

Type Considerations Limits
BOOK REVIEWS
Short articles reviewing a book of interest to JOGC readership Book cover image required, with permission from publisher to reproduce Max. 200 words,
no abstract,
no references,
max. 1 image (cover)
BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS
Short articles on current best practices, updates to previous research, emerging topics, or the results of small surveys, cohort studies or qualitative studies, as well as essays expressing views, observations, reflections or perspectives on advances, innovations, controversial issues, current problems and other topics of interest to JOGC readership Abstract: Unstructured, max. 100 words Max. 1500 words,
max. 6 keywords (MeSH),
max. 10 references
IMAGES OF THE MONTH
Unique and captivating images demonstrating medical novelty, accompanied by a short text Max. 150 words,
no abstract,
max. 3 references,
max. 2 images (do not use figure captions)
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Comments on a recently published JOGC article received within 8 weeks of the article's publication in a print issue Max. 600 words,
no abstract,
no headings,
max. 3 references
ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Reports by authors presenting the results of their original research Abstract: Structured, max. 250 words: Objective, Methods, Results, Conclusion
Survey research: Min 50% response rate
Observational studies: Follow STROBE reporting guidelines		 Max. 3000 words,
max. 6 keywords (MeSH),
max. 30 references
REVIEWS
Systematic reviews or meta-analyses of the literature on topics with direct implications for or applications to clinical practice Abstract: Structured, max. 300 words: Objective, Data Sources, Study Selection, Data Extraction and Synthesis, Conclusion
Note: Include risk of bias assessment. Adhere to PRISMA methods		 Max. 3500 words,
max. 6 keywords,
max. 40 references
RESEARCH LETTERS
Concise case study report or preliminary report of original research presented in the format of a letter to the editor Max. 600 words,
no abstract,
max. 3 references,
max. 1 figure or table

6. SUBMISSION DECISIONS

Desk reject Send back to author Accept for peer review
Work not within scope of JOGC Failure to format according to journal style for the article type All problem areas avoided
Survey response rate below 50% Failure to include all required submission components
Failure to obtain research ethics board (REB) approval when required to do so Quality of written language not suitable for peer review process
Failure to pre-register clinical trial
Top-level failure of similarity check (iThenticate): Unattributed use of large portions of text and/or data, misattribution of data, presenting others' work as if own, major redundancy and/or evidence authors have sought to hide redundancy Similarity check low-level failure (iThenticate): Failure to adequately paraphrase cited text
Evidence of scientific misconduct
Work previously published or under consideration for publication elsewhere

7. PREPARING TO SUBMIT

7.1 Formatting notes

7.1.1 Components required for submissions
All submissions (except invited editorials and book reviews) must be made through Editorial Manager, the JOGC's online submission system and include all necessary components in the requested formats.

In order to ensure the integrity of the JOGC's double-blind peer review process, ensure all identifying information is contained ONLY on the cover page and not in your manuscript.

Download the JOGC cover page template. Save the name of your cover page file in the following format: COVER_PAGE_CorrespAuthorSurname.docx

REQUIRED COMPONENTS, BY ARTICLE TYPE

Cover Page (save file as: COVER_PAGE_CorrespAuthorSurname.docx)

COMPONENT Clinical
Conundrum		 Brief
Communications		 Image of
the Month		 Letters Original
Research		 Review
Cover page document Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Manuscript document, saved as:
MANUSCRIPT_CorrespAuthorSurname.docx		 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Abstract Yes Yes No No Yes Yes
Images/figures, videos (sep. file each figure/image; editable),
figure(s) saved as: FIGURE_1.xxx,
video(s) saved as: VIDEO_1.xxx		 Yes If applicable Yes If applicable If applicable If applicable
Appendices/supplemental (online) material, individual publication-ready file(s) (not copyedited) If applicable If applicable If applicable N/A If applicable If applicable
Keywords (MeSH only) Yes Yes No No Yes Yes
Max. suggested reviewers 2 3 N/A N/A 3 3
Confirmation of patient consent Yes If applicable Yes If applicable If applicable If applicable
Completed disclosure form, saved as:
DISCL_AuthorSurname.docx		 Each author Each author Each author Each author Each author Each author
Signed copyright transfer form Each author Each author Each author Each author Each author Each author
First author photo (if desired), saved as:
AUTH_IMAGE_AuthorSurname.docx		 Optional Optional No No Optional Optional
CONSORT documents, saved as:
CONSORT_FLOW.docx,
CONSORT_CHECK.docx		 N/A If applicable N/A N/A If applicable N/A

7.1.2 Manuscript - General formatting

  • Consult the language and writing section.
  • Prepare your manuscript in a double-spaced Word document using 12-point Times New Roman font.
  • Leave a one-inch margin on all sides.
  • Use a simple layout for your manuscript and only basic formatting (bold, italics, superscript, subscript, etc.).
  • Do not use Word's justification or hyphenation option.
  • Do not use Word's line numbering option.
  • Label references to multiple tables, figures, sources, etc. individually not with ranges (e.g., "tables 2, 3, and 4" instead of "tables 2–4") to facilitate hyperlinking to each element in the electronic version of your article.

7.1.3 Footnotes
Do not use footnotes except for author affiliations and in tables.

  • Author affiliation markers: Use superscript Arabic numerals
  • Table footnote markers: Use superscript lowercase letters

7.1.4 Tables

  • Omit vertical lines and shading.
  • Use only superscript lowercase letters as footnote symbols.
  • If you are including both a reference number and a footnote symbol, place the reference number first followed by a comma and the letter (no space).
  • Place tables in the main manuscript after the reference section.

7.1.5 References
The JOGC uses a modified Vancouver style. Please use the Vancouver style to format your references.

IN-TEXT CITATIONS

Identify each reference cited in the text with a superscript Arabic numeral. Number sources consecutively in the order in which they appear.

Important: Before submitting your manuscript, verify that all references cited in the main paper appear in the reference list listed in the order in which they are cited in the manuscript.

REFERENCE LIST EXAMPLES

Journal article
[1] Pinar H, Koch MA, Hawkins H, et al. The stillbirth collaborative research network postmortem examination protocol. Am J Perinatol 2012;29:180–9.

Book
[2] Strunk Jr W, White EB. The elements of style. 4th ed. New York: Longman; 2000.

Authored book chapter
[3] Meltzer PS, Kallioniemi A, Trent JM. Chromosome alterations in human solid tumors. In: Vogelstein B, Kinzler KW, editors. The genetic basis of human cancer. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2002. p. 93–113.

Website
[4] Cancer Research UK. Cancer statistics reports for the UK. Available at www.cancerresearchuk.org/aboutcancer/statistics/cancerstatsreport/; 2003. Accessed March 13, 2020.

Dataset
[5] Oguro M, Imahiro S, Saito S, Nakashizuka T. Mortality data for Japanese oak wilt disease and surrounding forest compositions, Mendeley Data, v1; 2015. https://doi.org/10.17632/xwj98nb39r.1.

7.1.6 Figures, images, and videos

  • Submit all figures and images as separate files (native format for figures). Do not embed in the manuscript.
  • List all figure/image captions (titles) in the main manuscript, after the reference section, with reference to the figure number in parentheses beside the caption.
  • When creating your figures and images:
    • Be sure to consider readers with colour blindness when making your colour choices (also helps readers viewing black and white versions of your figures and images).
    • Never rely on colour alone to convey information (i.e., use dotted and dashed lines, with or without colour, instead of two solid lines of different colours).
  • All figures and tables must define any abbreviations used. Generally, material already included in a table should not be repeated in a figure. Do not use vertical lines in tables to separate columns.
  • Figures and tables should complement rather than duplicate information found within the text. They should be complete enough to be understood without continual reference to the text but contain only the data needed for the reader's understanding.
  • Videos must be a minimum resolution of HD 1080P. Text-only slides are not accepted.
  • Each video file must be a maximum of 150 MB. For multiple files, all files combined must be a maximum of 1 GB.

Accepted figure and image formats

  • JPG
  • AI
  • EPS
  • PDF (editable)
  • SVG
  • TIF/TIFF:
    • Colour or greyscale photographs (halftones): Min. 300 dpi
    • Bitmapped (pure black & white pixels) line drawings: Min. 1000 dpi
    • Combination bitmapped line/half-tone (colour or greyscale): Min. 500 dpi

Accepted video formats

  • WMV
  • AVI
  • MOV
  • 16
  • MP4

7.1.7 Notes about images and colour vision deficiency (colour blindness)
It is good practice to create images that are suitable for readers with colour vision deficiency (CVD). Doing so also makes your images more accessible to all readers when your article is printed or photocopied.

  • Avoid colour combinations known to cause problems for people with CVD:
    • Red/green
    • Blue/yellow
    • Blue/grey
    • Blue/purple
    • Green/blue
    • Green/grey
    • Green/black
    • Green/brown
    • Green/orange
    • Light green/yellow
  • To distinguish elements, use textures instead of (or in addition to) colours.
  • Consider using different shades of the same colour (i.e., monochrome) instead of combinations of different colours.
  • Use high/sharp contrast.

7.1.8 Some tools for creating CVD-friendly figures and images

  • COLORBREWER 2.0 - Colour scheme tool for cartography and other figures
  • Color Oracle - Color blindness simulator for PC, Mac, and Linux
  • Color Contrast Check - Tool to check contrast of foreground and background colour combinations
  • Colour pallet - Set of 7 colours that are unambiguous for readers with and without CVS

7.2 Drug names

  • Use only the generic and non-proprietary names for all drugs and active ingredients.
  • Consult the Merck Manual list of drugs by name to find a generic name.
  • If necessary to include the proprietary (brand/trade name), place it in parentheses following the generic name at first mention.

7.3 Patient consent

Without exception, if your manuscript contains any information or images related to an individual patient (even non-identifying), you must provide a completed declaration of consent obtained (PDF) at the time of submission attesting that you have obtained the patient's informed and voluntary written consent to publish. Retain the written patient consent on file in a secure manner and in accordance with relevant privacy legislation.

All identifying patient information and images must be masked or removed unless the patient has explicitly consented for them to be published.

Important: Do not send patient consent documents or any identifying patient information to the JOGC under any circumstances. Such transmission requires additional security features in order to comply with legislation governing the receipt and storage of confidential patient information.

7.4 Language and writing

The JOGC accepts manuscripts written in English or French. When evaluating new submissions, the Editor-in-Chief will take the quality of writing into consideration. Manuscripts must be written in grammatically correct English or French and, whenever possible, follow plain language guidelines. We highly recommend you review your manuscript one final time before submitting it to make certain it contains no grammatical, spelling or other writing errors and to ensure clarity and concision.

If the language of your manuscript is not your native language, you may wish to have your manuscript professionally edited before submitting it.

7.4.1 Spelling
The JOGC uses Canadian French spelling and writing conventions and Canadian English spelling, which is a combination of American and British English spelling together with some unique Canadian elements.

7.4.2 Tips for plain language writing and some examples

  • Use consistent and current terminology and never synonyms; avoid acronyms and jargon
    ❌ patient charts/patient files/hospital records ⇒ ✅ patient records
    ❌ patients were randomized… ⇒ ✅ patients were randomly assigned…
    ❌ records were sent to the ER… ⇒ ✅ records were sent to the emergency department…
    ❌ Caesarean section ⇒ ✅ cesarean delivery (note spelling and use of lowercase "c")
  • Use short, common words when possible
    ❌ utilize ⇒ ✅ use
  • Avoid wordiness and redundancy
    ❌ the current committee chair… ⇒ ✅ the committee chair… [if no reference to previous chair]
    ❌ future prospects ⇒ ✅ prospects
    ❌ potential risk ⇒ ✅ risk
  • Avoid using many words when just a few will do
    ❌ despite the fact that… ⇒ ✅ although…
    ❌ for the purpose of… ⇒ ✅ to…
  • Use the active voice rather than the passive
    ❌ the reports were submitted to… ⇒ ✅ the authors submitted the reports to…
    ❌ the reason why the implementation failed was because… ⇒ ✅ implementation failed due to… ⇒ ✅ X caused the implementation to fail
  • Use positive constructions rather than negative ones, when possible
    ❌ we do not recommend using x, y, z… ⇒ ✅ we recommend avoiding x, y, z…
  • Use verbs instead of nouns
    ❌ we carried out an assessment of… ⇒ ✅ we assessed…
    ❌ we came to the conclusion that… ⇒ ✅ we concluded…
    ❌ there is a tendency among clinicians to… ⇒ ✅ clinicians tend to…
  • Whenever possible, break long or complex sentences (e.g., sentences with multiple dependent clauses) into shorter ones (but be sure changes don't result in a series of short, choppy sentences)
    ❌ Mia is a labour and delivery nurse who manages the neonatal ICU group, where Elisabeth Dubé, who oversaw the implementation of the group's new policy, has been for 22 years ⇒
    ✅Mia is a labour and delivery nurse and manager of the neonatal ICU group. A long-time member of the group, Elisabeth Dubé oversaw implementation of the group's new policy.
  • Address only one topic per paragraph
  • Ensure items in series and lists are parallel and grammatically correct
    • All same grammatical category (nouns, verbs, etc.)
      ❌ the system's ability to update, [to] send notices and [to] usability was improved ⇒ ✅ the system's ability to update, send notices and measure usability was improved
    • Any prepositions work for each item
      ❌ knowledge and ability to… ⇒ ✅ knowledge of and ability to…
  • Use "must/must not" to communicate an obligation/restriction and "should/should not" for a recommendation
    ❌ the procedure should/should not…, the procedure shall/shall not… ⇒ ✅ the procedure must/must not… (in the case of a requirement)
  • Use concise formulations
    ❌ because of the test result being out of range… ⇒ ✅ because of the out-of-range test result…

7.4.3 Writing about patients
Use person-first language. Some examples:

❌ subject, control ⇒ ✅ patient, woman, participant, etc.
❌ elderly ⇒ ✅ older adults
❌ a diabetic ⇒ ✅ a person with diabetes

7.4.4 Inclusive language
Inclusive language acknowledges diversity, conveys respect to all people and is sensitive to differences.

Some writing strategies:

  • Use gender-inclusive nouns
    ❌ chairman, husband ⇒ ✅ chair, spouse
  • Change third person to second person
    ❌ the applicant must submit his/her… ⇒ ✅ you must submit your…/submit your…
  • Change singular to plural
    ❌ a clinician develops his… ⇒ ✅ clinicians develop their…

For direction on concepts, terms, synonyms and definitions related to gender and sexual diversity, consult the Government of Canada's bilingual (English-French) gender and sexual diversity glossary.

7.4.5 Sex/gender and race/ethnicity

Sex/Gender. According the AMA Manual of Style (ed)Sex refers to the biological characteristics of males and females. Gender includes more than sex and serves as a cultural indicator of a person's personal and social identity. Authors should specify sex when it is relevant. In research articles, sex/gender should be reported and defined, and how sex/gender was assessed should be described.

Race/Ethnicity. JOGC recommend the following guidance from when reporting of data on race and ethnicity:

  • The Methods section should include an explanation of who identified participant race and ethnicity and the classifications used (e.g., health record, survey instrument).
  • If race and ethnicity categories were collected for a study, the reasons that these were assessed also should be described in the Methods section.
  • Specific racial and ethnic categories are preferred over collective terms, when possible. Authors should report the specific categories used in their studies. Categories included in groups labeled as "other" should be defined.

7.4.6 Generic verbs
Follow these suggestions for avoiding generic verbs followed by a noun, from the Canadian Style Guide.

Instead of (generic verb + noun)Use (single verb)
be able to; have the ability tocan
conduct an analysisanalyze
give a description ofdescribe
give a presentation onpresent
give your authorizationauthorize
have the intentionintend; plan
make a change tochange
make a decisiondecide
make a promisepromise
make a recommendationrecommend
make an attemptattempt
offer a suggestionsuggest
take under considerationconsider
do the calculation ofcalculate

7.4.7 English-language resources
Spelling and terminology

Style and usage

7.4.8 French-language resources
General language

Medical

7.5 Keywords

All keywords must be MeSH terms. Use the tools below to find MeSH terms.

7.6 Online supplemental material

Online supplemental material is not copyedited or translated and will be published as it appears in your initial submission. As a result, be sure all such material has been carefully checked, is appropriately formatted and is publication ready.

After the reference section of your manuscript, provide a list of all file names and a short description of each file (max. 20 characters).

Convert documents to PDF and submit only the PDF version (i.e., no MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc. documents).

7.7 Copyright

Prior to publication, authors must sign a form transferring copyright to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC). The copyright transfer form will be requested at revision; however, this request does not guarantee acceptance. Copyright assignment does not apply to authors who have paid the open access fee for their paper.

7.8 Permissions

Authors must have the necessary permissions to reproduce any published, copyrighted or registered material, including images of book covers for book reviews. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring such permissions have been obtained and for attesting to it during the online submission process.

8. AFTER ACCEPTANCE

8.1 Peer review

Once your submission has been determined to be suitable for peer review, the manuscript will be sent out to independent experts in the field. These reviewers will assess the originality, validity, and significance of your work. The reviewers will not know the authors' names and vice versa (i.e., double blind). We encourage you to read the JOGC editorial on peer review.

The Editorial Office recognizes that there may be cases where particular interests, professional relationships, etc., may be a concern for possible bias in an assessment, either positively or negatively. We therefore permit you to identify opposed reviewers (along with specific reasons for wishing to exclude the reviewer). While we will do our best to accommodate such requests, we reserve the right to send manuscripts to the reviewers of our choice.

8.2 Pre-proofs and online publication

Articles are made available online as a pre-proof as soon as possible after acceptance. These are pre-copyedited versions and not the definitive versions of record. At this stage, only some minor enhancements are made for formatting and readability.

Pre-proofs make it possible for articles to be assigned a DOI, thereby making the article fully citable and searchable by title, author name(s), and the full text. (Once the definitive version for publication is ready, it will replace the pre-proof version, retaining the same DOI.)

8.3 Proofs

After copyediting, translation if applicable, and typesetting are complete, the corresponding author will receive a proof to review through the Proof Central online interface.

8.4 Promoting your article

Once your article is compiled within an issue, the corresponding author will receive the article Share Link, a customized link for all article authors that provides free access to the article for 50 days. Anyone who clicks on the link within the 50-day period will have full access to the article without the need to register or pay any fees.

You can use the Share Link to share and promote your article on social media, in press releases, by email, and on your personal or institutional website.

9. ASSISTANCE

General editorial questions
Contact the JOGC Editorial Office at [email protected].

Editorial Manager questions (technical problems or difficulties with submissions)
Contact Elsevier via Elsevier chat, by completing an online support form, by requesting a callback, or by calling the phone support number for your region.