Surgical Intelligence Journal · Open Access
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Author guidelines & policies

We respect your time. Our submission process is designed to be frictionless so you can focus on what matters: the science.

Format-Free Initial Submission. We do not enforce strict stylistic rules (like specific reference formatting) until your manuscript is accepted for publication. Submit your work in any standard structure, provided the science is clear and the essential components are present.

1. Acceptable File Formats

We accept initial submissions in only two formats to streamline the review process:

  • Microsoft Word (.docx): Upload your file directly through our submission portal.
  • Google Docs: Paste your document link into the portal. Crucial: You must set the sharing permissions to "Anyone with the link can view" before submitting. Our editorial team will download a static copy for blinded peer review.

2. Manuscript Structure

While we do not mandate specific fonts or line spacing for the initial review, your manuscript must include the following standard sections to be evaluated effectively:

  • Title Page: Manuscript title; full names, degrees, and institutional affiliations of all authors; and contact information for the corresponding author.
  • Abstract: A structured summary (Background, Methods, Results, Conclusion) of no more than 300 words.
  • Introduction: Briefly state the clinical problem and the objective of your AI/computational application.
  • Methods: Detail your study design. For AI/Machine Learning papers, this section must explicitly describe the datasets used (training, validation, testing), the algorithmic architecture, and the performance metrics evaluated.
  • Results: Present your findings clearly.
  • Discussion: Interpret the results, acknowledge limitations (especially regarding algorithmic bias or generalizability), and discuss clinical implications.
  • Conclusion: A brief summary of the main takeaways.
  • Disclosures & Conflicts of Interest: Full transparency is required regarding funding sources, equity in tech companies, or patents related to the submitted work.
  • References: For initial submission, any consistent citation style (AMA, APA, Vancouver) is acceptable.

3. Tables, Figures, and Media

  • Placement: You may embed tables and figures directly within the text of your .docx or Google Doc where they are most relevant, or place them all at the end of the document.
  • Video/Media: As an AI and surgical journal, we highly encourage video submissions (e.g., overlaying computer vision bounding boxes on surgical video). These can be hosted on a platform like YouTube/Vimeo (set to unlisted) and linked directly in your manuscript, or uploaded as supplementary .mp4 files.

4. Code and Data Availability (Strongly Encouraged)

To promote reproducibility in surgical data science, the Journal of Surgical Intelligence strongly encourages authors to make their code and anonymized datasets publicly available. Please include a "Data Availability" statement at the end of your manuscript linking to repositories like GitHub, Hugging Face, or institutional data archives.

5. The Blinding Process

We utilize a double-blind peer review process. Once you submit your .docx or Google Doc, our editorial staff will separate your Title Page from the main manuscript to ensure your identity is hidden from the peer reviewers.

Please ensure you do not include identifying information (such as your institution's name) in the body of the manuscript itself.

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