1. MANUSCRIPT FORMAT
All manuscripts submitted to the Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences (KJMS) must be prepared in accordance with the “Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals” published by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Manuscripts that do not comply with these instructions may be returned to the authors for correction without entering the peer-review process.
1.1. General Formatting Rules
Manuscripts must be written in clear, concise, and scientific English. The text should be prepared in Microsoft Word™ format, single column, 1.5 line spacing, with 2.5 cm margins on all sides, using Times New Roman, 12-point font. All paragraphs should be indented 1.5 cm from the first line.
Decimal numbers must be indicated using a period (.). Measurement units should conform to the International System of Units (SI). All abbreviations must be spelled out at first mention in the text, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses. Abbreviations should be avoided as much as possible in the title and abstract.
The main text should consist of the following sections: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Discussion.
The Introduction should be concise and clearly state the objective of the study in its final paragraph. The literature review should be limited to information relevant to the scientific rationale of the study.
In the Materials and Methods section, eligibility criteria for participants (patients, controls, or laboratory animals) in observational or experimental studies must be clearly described, including age, sex, and other essential characteristics. For drugs, devices, software, or commercial products mentioned in the text, the product name, manufacturer, city, and country should be provided in parentheses. All procedures and statistical analyses must be described in sufficient detail to allow replication. Previously established methods should be cited appropriately, while new or modified methods should be described along with their rationale and limitations. Generic names, dosages, and routes of administration of all drugs and chemicals must be stated. For randomized controlled trials, the randomization method, group allocation, and blinding procedures must be clearly described. Statistical analysis methods must be specified at the end of this section.
The Results section should present findings clearly, logically, and without unnecessary repetition between text, tables, and figures. Data should not be presented in both table and graphical form simultaneously. Only findings relevant to the study objectives should be emphasized. Interpretation of results should be reserved for the Discussion section.
The Discussion should begin with a brief summary of the main findings, followed by interpretation in comparison with relevant literature. Strengths and limitations of the study should be discussed, along with possible explanations and implications for future research. The final paragraph should serve as the Conclusion.
The Conclusion should present concise, data-supported recommendations directly related to the study objectives.
1.2. Manuscript Types and Word Limits
Manuscripts submitted to the Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences are evaluated within the scope of one of the manuscript types specified below. Correct identification of the manuscript type directly affects the structure, word limits, abstract format, and evaluation process of the article.
1.2.1. Original Article:
Original articles are studies conducted in clinical, experimental, or epidemiological fields that present original scientific data. The main text length should be a maximum of 3500 words, including the abstract and references; the abstract length should be a maximum of 300 words. Table and figure captions are not included in the word limit specified for the main text. In original articles, a maximum of 6 tables and/or figures and 30 references may be used. Structured abstracts must be used in original articles. In studies requiring ethics committee approval, the approval information must be stated in the materials and methods section.
1.2.2. Review Article:
Review articles are papers that evaluate current literature on a specific topic with a systematic and critical approach. The main text of reviews should be a maximum of 4000 words, including the abstract and references; the abstract length should be a maximum of 300 words. In review articles, a maximum of 6 tables and/or figures and 50 references may be used. Reviews are taken into evaluation upon the editor's invitation or approval.
1.2.3. Case Report:
Case reports should include clinical cases that are rare, educational in terms of diagnosis and treatment, and contribute to the literature. The main text length should be a maximum of 500 words; a maximum of 3 tables and/or figures and 10 references should be used. Abstracts are not required for case reports. Written informed consent must be obtained for all case reports where the patient's identity could be identified. These limits aim to ensure that case reports are concise, selective, and educational in nature.
1.2.4. Letter to the Editor:
The main text length should be a maximum of 500 words; a maximum of 3 tables and/or figures and 5 references may be used. Abstracts are not required for letters to the editor.
1.2.5. Other Submissions:
Editorials, invited commentaries, and similar content are accepted upon invitation by the Editorial Board. The format and limits for such writings are determined by the editor.
2. MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION
Manuscripts to be submitted to the Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences must be uploaded via the online manuscript submission system. During submission, manuscript documents must be prepared as separate files to ensure a healthy double-blind peer review process. In this context, the cover letter, title page, main document file, and tables/figures (if any) must be uploaded to the system as individual files.
2.1. Cover Letter
It must be prepared as a separate file from the main document. It should be uploaded during submission and must include the title of the article, the manuscript type, and the contact information of the corresponding author. The cover letter should briefly state the scientific significance and originality of the study; it must explicitly declare that the manuscript has not been previously published and is not under evaluation by another journal. An ethical declaration must be clearly included in the cover letter. In studies requiring ethics committee approval, authors must declare that the relevant approval has been obtained and the ethics committee approval certificate must be submitted. In studies that do not require ethics committee approval, this situation should be clearly stated. Authors must briefly declare whether there is any conflict of interest regarding the study. Furthermore, it should be stated that all authors have approved the content of the study and that the submission of the manuscript was decided by mutual agreement. If the study has been previously presented as an oral or poster presentation at a scientific meeting, the location and date of the presentation must be specified.
2.2. Title Page
It must be prepared as a separate file from the main document. This page should include the full title of the manuscript, the manuscript type, word counts for the main text and abstract, and the number of tables and figures. The first and last names, e-mail addresses, institutional affiliations, city and country information, and ORCID numbers of all authors must be provided. The correspondence address, telephone number, and e-mail address of the corresponding author must be included on the title page. To preserve the double-blind peer review process, this information on the title page must not be present in the main document file.
2.3. Abstract and Keywords
Manuscripts must be submitted with an English abstract as well as a Turkish abstract. The abstract should be located at the beginning of the main document file and should clearly and concisely reflect the aim, method, and main findings of the study. It should be usable by indexing services without the need for adaptation by stating only the essential findings and conclusions. The abstract must be understandable independently of the main text; it should not contain tables, figures, or reference numbers. In research articles, the abstract section should include the subheadings: Objective, Materials and Methods, Results, and Conclusion. Subheadings are not used in abstracts for reviews; abstracts are not required for manuscript types such as case reports and letters to the editor. Keywords should be placed immediately below the abstract. Keywords must be selected in accordance with the "Index Medicus: Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)" standards and should be at least three and at most six in number.
2.4. Main Document
It must not contain any information that could reveal the identity of the authors. The main document file should include: Abstract and Keywords (Turkish and English), Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgement, Conflict of Interest, References, and figure legends (if any). In studies requiring ethics committee approval, a general statement regarding the acquisition of ethical approval should be included in the main text; however, details such as the committee name, date, and decision number should be arranged in a way that does not compromise the double-blind peer review process.
2.5. Acknowledgement
The acknowledgement section should be located at the end of the main text. Under this section, acknowledgments should be brief and clear, and should only be made for scientific/technical support and financial resources. It should not include situations such as the use of routine institutional facilities or support/assistance in manuscript preparation (writing or secretarial work).
2.6. Conflict of Interest
The conflict of interest section should be located at the end of the acknowledgement section. To preserve the double-blind peer review process, details containing personal information should not be included under these subheadings during the evaluation phase.
2.7. Tables and Figures
Tables must be submitted as a single Word document, separate from the main text. All tables should be in the same file and numbered according to the order of citation in the text. Table titles should be placed above the table, include a sequence number, and be written with only the first letter capitalized. All abbreviations used within the table should be explained below the table, and units of numerical values provided must be specified. Figures (drawings, photographs, radiological images, and graphs) must be uploaded as separate files from the main text. Figures must be submitted in TIFF or JPEG format and have a resolution of at least 300 dpi. The dimensions of the figures should be prepared so that there is no loss of quality during the evaluation and printing process. Figure titles should be placed below the figure, numbered according to the order of appearance in the text, and written with only the first letter capitalized. Figures must not contain any information that could reveal the identity of the author or institution. Figure legends should be placed in a separate section at the end of the main document file. Descriptions for each figure should be sufficiently detailed, yet avoid repetition of information in the main text. All abbreviations used in figure legends must be clearly defined, and descriptions should be prepared in a way that allows the content of the figure to be understood without referring to the main text.
2.8. References
References citing the literature should be numbered according to the order of appearance in the text and listed in the same order at the end of the manuscript. In-text citation numbers should be shown in parentheses and placed before punctuation marks at the end of the sentence. Author names should not be used within the text as much as possible. When an author's name is given in the text, the citation number should appear as a number in parentheses immediately after the author's name, not at the end of the sentence. For articles with more than six authors, the expression "et al." should be used after the sixth author. Page numbers should be written in full (e.g., 51–59). References must be formatted in accordance with the ICMJE (The Vancouver Style) examples. Examples of frequently used reference types are provided below.
2.8.1. Reference Style Examples
Journal Article:
1-Karakayalı M, Omar T, Artac I, RencüzoÄŸulları Ä°, KarabaÄŸ Y, Hamideyin Åž, et al. The white blood cell count to mean platelet volume ratio (WMR) is associated with SYNTAX score in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Kafkas J Med Sci. 2023; 13(2):173–178.
Book:
1-Guyton AC, Hall JE. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 14th ed. Philadelphia: Elsevier; 2021.
2-Sayek Ä°. Temel Cerrahi. 4. baskı. Ankara: GüneÅŸ Tıp Kitabevleri; 2015.
Book Chapter:
1-Cooke DJ, Philip L. To treat or not to treat? An empirical perspective. In: Hollin CR, editor. Handbook of offender assessment and treatment. Chichester: Wiley; 2001. p. 3–15.
2-Özmen MM. Akut batın. In: Sayek Ä°, editor. Temel Cerrahi. 4. baskı. Ankara: GüneÅŸ Tıp Kitabevleri; 2015. s. 615–628.
Electronic Resource:
1-Cancer Research UK. Cancer statistics reports for the UK. Available from: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/aboutcancer/statistics/cancerstatsreport/ Accessed January 09, 2026.
2-Türkiye Cumhuriyeti SaÄŸlık Bakanlığı. Türkiye kalp ve damar hastalıkları istatistikleri. Available from: https://www.saglik.gov.tr Accessed January 09, 2026.
3-Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences. Author guidelines. Available from: https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/kjms Accessed January 09, 2026.
Other Resources: The ICMJE Sample References guide should be used for other resource types. Access: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html
3. ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES
Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences publishes in accordance with the good publication practice principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (http://publicationethics.org/resources/guidelines). In manuscripts submitted to the journal, authors accept that their work complies with ethical, scientific, and legal rules, has not been previously published, and is not under evaluation in another journal. According to our journal's ethics policy, plagiarism is intolerable. The content of all manuscripts submitted for publication is checked by comparing it against a large database of existing academic publications via plagiarism screening. The similarity rate must be 20% or less.
In studies involving human participants, the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki (https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki/) must have been followed, and relevant ethics committee approval must have been obtained. In studies involving animal experiments, authors must declare that they have complied with institutional or national ethical guidelines regarding the use and care of animals.
To protect the double-blind peer review process, information that could reveal identity, such as the name of the ethics committee, decision number, and date, should not be included in the main text submitted during the evaluation phase. In the final text to be published after the acceptance of the manuscript, information regarding the ethics committee approval (committee name, date, and decision number) will be explicitly stated by the editorial office in the Materials and Methods section.
The journal requires that appropriate ethics committee applications have been made, informed consents have been obtained, and these are reported in the article. In the case of using previously published tables, figures, or images, the relevant source must be cited and permission must be obtained from the copyright holder.
4. MANUSCRIPT EVALUATION PROCESS
Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences is a national peer-reviewed journal in which original research articles are evaluated by experts in their fields. All manuscripts submitted to the journal are first examined by the editors in terms of writing rules and publication principles. Studies found suitable are sent to at least two independent referees related to the subject. The evaluation process is conducted as double-blind, and the identity information of the referees and authors is kept confidential. Necessary corrections requested by the referees are sought from the authors, and the final decision is made by the editors. Manuscripts accepted for publication are subjected to redaction to comply with the journal's writing rules. The print-ready version of the article is submitted for author approval and is placed in the publishing queue after approval is received.
5. COPYRIGHT TRANSFER FORM
Manuscripts submitted to the Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences must not have been published anywhere before (except as an abstract or as part of a presentation, review, or thesis) and must not be in the evaluation process of another journal. The author(s) transfer all rights of the writing to the Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences unless the study is rejected or returned. The author(s) agree that they will not publish the work in another language or place without obtaining permission from the Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences. All authors are obliged to fill out the Copyright Transfer Form and upload it to the system during manuscript submission.
6. DOI NUMBER
A digital object identifier (DOI) number is assigned to every article accepted for publication.
7. MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION
Manuscript collection and evaluation processes are carried out online at https://tipdergi.kafkas.edu.tr/jvi.asp or https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/kaftbd. While uploading the manuscript in the online system, it is mandatory to upload the Title Page, Full text of the manuscript, Copyright Transfer Form, and all necessary documents related to the manuscript. The journal strictly adheres to the guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) (http://www.icmje.org/index.html).
Note: Starting from 2026, Kafkas Journal of Medical Sciences will be published three times a year in March, July, and November.

Manuscript Submission Checklist
Before submission, the corresponding author should check the following items:
The manuscript complies with the journal's writing rules and the specified manuscript type.
The Cover Letter is uploaded, and the ethical declaration, absence of conflict of interest, originality of the manuscript, and that it has not been published or under simultaneous evaluation are declared.
The Title Page is prepared as a separate file; first and last names, e-mail addresses, institutional affiliations, city and country information, and ORCID numbers of all authors are specified. The corresponding author's correspondence address, telephone number, and e-mail address are included on the title page.
The Main Document does not contain information that could reveal the identity of the author or institution.
Abstract and keywords comply with writing rules.
In studies requiring ethics committee approval, necessary information regarding the ethical approval is stated.
Tables are presented as a single Word file separate from the main text.
Figures and graphics are uploaded as separate files from the main text in appropriate format and resolution (at least 300 dpi).
Figure legends are located in a separate section at the end of the main document file, after the references.
References are organized in accordance with the ICMJE (The Vancouver Style) system.
The Copyright Transfer Form is uploaded to the system.