The editorial board is committed to upholding the highest standards of scientific integrity. Our team carefully evaluates all published materials to ensure they meet the most rigorous ethical and academic criteria, guided by the following principles:

• Elsevier
• Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
• International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)

Duties and Responsibilities of the Editor-in-Chief

The Editor-in-Chief is accountable for all content published in the journal and ensures compliance with ethical publishing standards. Their responsibilities include:

• Assessing submissions for adherence to ethical standards, methodological rigor, clarity, and completeness;
• Identifying and mitigating potential conflicts of interest among authors, reviewers, and editors to prevent undue influence on publication decisions;
• Maintaining the confidentiality of personal data;
• Preventing the premature disclosure of scientific data by editors or reviewers before publication;
• Ensuring that editorial board members and reviewers do not exploit ideas, hypotheses, or data from manuscripts for personal gain;
• Addressing instances of unethical conduct by authors, reviewers, or editors;
• Taking swift action in cases of suspected breaches of scientific ethics or authorial integrity;
• Continuously enhancing the journal’s quality by selecting articles that tackle pressing issues in modern medical science, present cutting-edge research, and describe unique clinical cases.

Rights, Duties, and Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers have the right to:

• Expect confidentiality, which must be upheld by the Editor-in-Chief, responsible secretaries, and editorial staff;
• Decline to review a manuscript if they have a potential conflict of interest;
• Decline to review a manuscript if they lack sufficient expertise in the subject matter.

Reviewers are expected to:

• Adhere to the "Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals: Writing and Editing Biomedical Publications," established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE.org), including policies on authorship, confidentiality, and peer review;
• Complete reviews within the designated timeframe, which should not exceed two weeks;
• Respect the rights of authors and refrain from publicly discussing their work;
• Provide clear, well-reasoned, and constructive feedback;
• Avoid personal criticism of the author.

Reviewers are responsible for:

• Delivering high-quality, thorough reviews;
• Offering an impartial and objective assessment of the manuscript;
• Safeguarding the confidentiality of author ideas and research findings prior to publication.

Rights, Duties, and Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for the accuracy of all data and references in their manuscripts. Authorship carries significant academic, social, and financial implications and entails accountability for published work. The journal adheres to ICMJE guidelines for defining author roles and responsibilities.

Each co-author must disclose their individual contributions to the research, which are categorized as follows: A – research concept and design; B – data collection; C – data analysis and interpretation; D – manuscript writing; E – manuscript editing; F – final manuscript approval. A single author may fulfill multiple roles.

For multi-institutional collaborations, the manuscript should clearly outline the contributions of each co-author, ensuring transparency about their involvement. Practices such as "honorary authorship", where individuals who did not contribute to the research are listed as co-authors, are strictly prohibited.

Corresponding Author

The corresponding author serves as the primary liaison between the authors and the journal throughout the submission, revision, and publication process. This individual is responsible for ensuring compliance with all journal requirements and must be available to promptly respond to editorial inquiries. Post-publication, the corresponding author must remain accessible to address critiques of the work and provide additional information if requested by the editorial board.