Writing the Biomedical Manuscript: A Systematic Approach

Specific, Descriptive, LAST Abstract With title, 1st Impression to journal editor, reader Sometimes the only thing read Sets the tone for the paper Follow Journal Guidelines Often too long: ≤250 words: Cannot upload paper! Structure it with headers as required Write lastWith title, 1st Impression to journal editor, reader Sometimes the only thing read Sets the tone for the paper Follow Journal Guidelines Often too long: ≤250 words: Cannot upload paper! Structure it with headers as required Write last Dr. Catherine DeAngelis, Editor-In-Chief “The abstract is the single most important part of a manuscript, yet the most often poorly written” Abstract Introduction/purpose: 1 short sentence Methods, Results: 2-4 sentences Conclusion: 1-2 sentences Put objective as imperative style: Objective: To evaluate whether zinc supplementation during pregnancy affects infant birth measures.Introduction/purpose: 1 short sentence Methods, Results: 2-4 sentences Conclusion: 1-2 sentences Put objective as imperative style: Objective: To evaluate whether zinc supplementation during pregnancy affects infant birth measures. Include important implications or significance Emphasize methods, main results, and conclusion JAMA Structured Abstract Context—Summarize the study rationale and provide clinical (or other) reason for the study question. Objective—State the purpose or question asked. If more than one objective, state primary objective and key secondary objectives. Design—Describe basic design, including relevant details. Setting—General community, primary care, hospital, etc. Patients—Demographics, disorders, inclusion/exclusion criteria, etc. Interventions—Name, dose, dosage Main outcome measure(s) Results Conclusions The Effect of Zinc Supplementation on Pregnancy Outcome Objective—To evaluate whether zinc supplementation during pregnancy affects infant birth measures. Design—Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Setting—Outpatient clinic at University of Alabama at Birmingham. Patients—580 healthy African-American pregnant women with plasma zinc levels below normal levels, randomized at 19 weeks’ gestational age and divided by median body mass of 26 kg/m2 into placebo and zinc supplement groups. Intervention—Women receiving a non-zinc-containing prenatal vitamin tablet were randomized to 25 mg/day zinc or placebo. Outcome Measures—Birth weight, gestational age at birth, head circumference at birth. Results—Infants from zinc supplement group had greater birth weight (p<0.01) and head circumference (p=0.02) than those in placebo group. Women with body mass ≤ 26 kg/m2 had infants with significantly higher birth weights (median 245 g, p<0.001) and larger head circumference (median 0.7 cm, p=0.003). Conclusions—Daily zinc supplementation in women with low plasma zinc concentrations in early pregnancy is associated with greater birth weights and head circumferences, with the effect occurring in women with body mass index ≤26 kg/m2. The specific effects of zinc on the fetus are unknown, and future work is focusing on zinc effects on embryonic cells in vitro. =192 words Traditional Abstract Background There is increasing evidence that B lymphocytes are involved in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis, and they may be a therapeutic target. Rituximab, a monoclonal antibody, selectively targets and depletes CD20+ B lymphocytes. Methods In a phase 2, double-blind, 48-week trial involving 104 patients with relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis, we assigned 69 patients to receive 1000 mg of intravenous rituximab and 35 patients to receive placebo on days 1 and 15. The primary end point was the total count of gadolinium-enhancing lesions detected on magnetic resonance imaging scans of the brain at weeks 12, 16, 20, and 24. Clinical outcomes included safety, the proportion of patients who had relapses, and the annualized rate of relapse. Results As compared with patients who received placebo, patients who received rituximab had reduced counts of total gadolinium-enhancing lesions at weeks 12, 16, 20, and 24 (P<0.001) and of total new gadolinium-enhancing lesions over the same period (P<0.001); these results were sustained for 48 weeks (P<0.001). As compared with patients in the placebo group, the proportion of patients in the rituximab group with relapses was significantly reduced at week 24 (14.5% vs. 34.3%, P = 0.02) and week 48 (20.3% vs. 40.0%, P = 0.04). More patients in the rituximab group than in the placebo group had adverse events within 24 hours after the first infusion, most of which were mild-to-moderate events; after the second infusion, the numbers of events were similar in the two groups. Conclusions A single course of rituximab reduced inflammatory brain lesions and clinical relapses for 48 weeks. This trial was not designed to assess long-term safety or to detect uncommon adverse events. The data provide evidence of B-cell involvement in the pathophysiology of relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis. =286 words Be Specific & Descriptive The principles of reconstruction of the traumatic losses of the external ear are presented, with emphasis on effective treatment of the acutely injured ear. The steps necessary for obtaining satisfactory reconstruction are discussed, including two new techniques. In the past decade, advances in soft tissue surgical techniques have allowed surgeons to successfully reconstruct detached ears. We present two new surgical reconstruction techniques of the acutely injured detached ear. These include the use of local and distant tissues to obtain soft-tissue coverage, and the recent use of silastic cartilage for structural support... Don’t be vague—be substantive but brief NOT “The implications are summarized” INSTEAD Summarize the implications! The Paper as a Whole The Paper Is Cohesive The objective, specific aim, hypothesis is posed in Introduction Methods tell how you propose to answer these aims Results presented answer (or not) related to your objective/aim/hypothesis Discussion should be within the bounds of the results Conclusions directly answer the original questions in the Introduction Each section should refer back to one another Reviewers “Hear”