Publication Ethics

The journal follows the recommendations of COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) which shall be followed by editors, authors as well as reviewers.

Simultaneous publications (multiple publications)

The Editorial Board reviews and considers for publication original manuscripts that have not yet been published and are not being considered for publication by any other editorial office. Reference is made to any other published outputs or outputs in press based on the same research as the data in this article, explaining the relationship between this article and other publications. The authors shall submit these other related publications to the editors along with the manuscript.

The editors of the journal require authors of primary research and review articles (systematic reviews) to use the recommended practices and relevant checklists available on The EQUATOR Network | Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of Health Research in accordance with the research strategy and methodology.

Informed consent and ethics in research

When conducting research with patients, the editors of the journal require submission of the details regarding the approval of the research by the relevant ethics committee, including the registration number, and/or whether the research was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki (1964, as amended in 2013). The author shall be responsible to maintain the full anonymity of the patients. Images shall not contain a name, date of birth, ID number or any other personal data and the patient's eyes must be covered (in accordance with GDPR requirements).

Authorship

All authors have made a significant contribution to:

1) the overall design and layout of the study or the acquisition of the data or the analysis and interpretation of the data; and

2) the preparation of the manuscript or its critical evaluation and revision; and

3) approval of the final version submitted for publication.

The roles of each author shall be indicated (using initials).

If other persons contributed to the elaboration of the article but do not meet the above conditions for authorship, they are acknowledged in the article.

Changes to authorship

Before publication, a change in the order of authorship or a change of the corresponding author can be requested by sending a request to the Editor-in-Chief. The request shall include a justification for the change and written confirmation from all co-authors (by email or letter) that they agree to the change.

Role of the funding source

If any financial support has been provided to conduct the research or prepare the manuscript, the authors shall mention the fact in the article.

Appeals, complaints, corrections

Any appeal against a decision on a manuscript shall be lodged within 31 days of notification of the decision. The appeal shall be in the form of a letter addressed to the Editor-in-Chief and sent to the journal's editorial office. The letter shall contain clear and concise reasons for the appeal, including specific points of disagreement with the decision. The appeal shall then be considered by the journal's management team, headed by the Editor-in-Chief.

Complaints shall be lodged in writing to the Editor-in-Chief of the journal. The complaint shall be investigated by the management team, headed by the Editor-in-Chief and feedback shall be provided to the originator of the complaint.

Should any errors be found in the article, the authors shall send a letter to the Editor-in-Chief requesting that a correction be published in the form of an erratum. While publishing the correction, the editors shall follow the ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) principles.