Submission Instruction
Journal of Clinical Pediatrics (CN31-1377/R; ISSN 1000-3606) is a pediatric academic journal governed by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University and sponsored by Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. It was founded in 1983, publishing Chinese articles monthly. The journal primarily targets professionals of pediatric healthcare and technology, reporting on the latest scientific research achievements, new technologies, and diagnostic and treatment experiences in the fields of clinical medicine, basic medicine, preventive medicine, and pharmacy. Encouraging diversity and academic debate, the journal is committed to serving the community medicine, clinical practice, and the integration of fundamental and advanced research. The journal aims to promote the exchange of medical information, the development of medical science, and to enhance the health of the Chinese people. The main columns include: Reviews, Expert Discussions, Original Articles, Case Report, Rare and Difficult Diseases, Expert Comments, Ward Round, Literature Reviews, and Continuing Medical Education.
1. Submission Guidelines
1.1 Submission
The journal only accepts online submissions. Submitters can log into the journal’s website at http://jcp.xinhuamed.com.cn, click on "Submission/Tracking" and follow the instructions to provide complete information and upload their manuscripts. Please upload the soft copy of Recommendation Letter from author’s institute (which certifies the data source is reliable, there are no multiple submissions, the authorship is uncontroversial, and there are no confidentiality issues, etc.), and a copy of Approval Letter from the Medical Ethics Committee (when the research involves human subjects, it must include the list of the ethics committee members and each member's signature), or send them to the journal's editorial office by Email. Hard copy is unnecessary. If there are any funded projects, a copy of the project approval document must be provided. The funded project must be relevant to the content of the paper. For manuscripts based on different research directions or split from the same research project, authors should specify this when submitting.
1.2 Review
First, please log in to the journal's official website to submit your manuscript. The editorial office will then be responsible for receiving submissions and assigning a unique manuscript number, which will be promptly communicated to the author via email. Once the manuscript enters the review process, it will undergo an initial evaluation. The editorial office will notify the authors of the initial review results in a timely manner, including whether the manuscript passes the initial review and proceeds to external review. Manuscripts that pass the initial review will be sent to at least two experts for external review. A strict peer review system (double-blind peer review) is implemented, and the editor-in-chief will take the final review based on the external review comments, determining whether the manuscript is accepted or not (Review period is typically 3 months. For accepted manuscripts, the editorial office will carry out editing and processing before scheduling publication. If you have any questions regarding submissions, please feel free to contact the editorial office.
The journal selects manuscripts based on academic quality. Before the manuscript is published, the editorial office undertakes the obligation to keep the content of the manuscript confidential.
1.3 Manuscript Inquiry / Revision
Authors can log into the journal's website to inquire about the status of their manuscript. According to the "Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China", considering the journal’s situation, if authors do not receive a notice of acceptance or rejection within 3 months after receiving the journal's receipt notice, it suggests that the manuscript is still under review. If authors wish to submit the manuscript to another journal, they should contact this journal first. Do not make multiple submissions. The journal has the right to ask for compensation for reputation losses caused by multiple submissions. If multiple submissions are found, the journal will publish a statement that the article is a duplicate publication, retract the manuscript (including print and online versions), notify relevant administrations or departments, and notify journals in the relevant field. The following three situations are not regarded as multiple submissions: ① Manuscript published in non-publicly distributed periodicals; ② Manuscripts presented on academic conferences; ③ Manuscripts published as preprint; ④ Manuscripts published in other languages (with the consent of the journal where they were first published), but it must be indicated upon submission. If the revised manuscript is not returned within 2 months, it will be considered as automatically withdrawn. During the revision process, if authors are unable to return the revised manuscript within the specified time, they must submit a request for an extension to the editorial office. If the manuscript is not returned after the specified time without reason, the editorial office reserves the right to reject the manuscript.
2. Basic Requirements for Manuscripts
Manuscripts should be scientific, creative, and practical, with clear arguments, reliable data, accurate figures, and concise writing. The manuscript should be formatted on A4 paper (21.0 cm × 29.7 cm), with full-width alignment and default page margins. The Chinese text should be in Songti font, size 5; the English text should be in Times New Roman, with the same size as the Chinese text, and default character spacing. The line spacing should be set to 1.5 lines. If there are figures or tables in the manuscript, they should be placed at the end of the manuscript, arranged in order, and accompanied by headings. The reference list should exclude citation formats of EndNote or similar software. The submitted paper should clearly specify the type of report, such as Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) Report Guidelines, Observational Study Report Guidelines, Diagnostic Accuracy Report Guidelines, Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Report Guidelines, etc. Authors should verify and check the checklist themselves.
2.1 Title
The title should be appropriate, concise, and clear, reflecting the content of the article, preferably within 20 Chinese characters. Foreign acronyms should be avoided. The English title should be consistent with the Chinese title in meaning.
2.2 Authorship and Affiliations
All authors' names should be fully listed (with the surname in uppercase and the first letter of the given name capitalized), along with their institutional affiliations (detailed to the department), city, and postal code. Both Chinese and English versions of this information should be provided. The first author's affiliation should be fully detailed, including the full name of the institution, department, city, and postal code, and the corresponding author’s contact information must be clearly indicated. If authors are affiliated with multiple institutions, superscript numbers should be placed at the top right of their names, corresponding to each institution and postal code, separated by semicolons.
2.3 Abstract
Original research articles must include a structured Chinese and English abstract, containing four parts: Objective, Methods, Results (main data should be listed), and Conclusion, each part titled accordingly. If the article is based on a clinical trial research, the clinical trial registration number should be provided. The English and the Chinese abstract should be consistent with each other. The abstract should be written in the third person, without using phrases like "this article" or "this study" as subjects. The Chinese abstract of a research article should be around 500 Chinese characters, including the research objective, methods, and results. A review abstract should be about 400 characters. Commentary and expert discussions should include a non-structured abstract of approximately 300 characters in both Chinese and English, covering the objective, conclusion, and offering unique insights.
2.4 Keywords
All articles must be labeled with 3 to 8 keywords, separated by semicolons. The Chinese and English keywords should be consistent and, if possible, use terms from the Chinese Medical Subject Headings (CMeSH) published by the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. If there are no corresponding terms in CMeSH, consider: ① Selecting several directly related subject headings for combination; ② Choosing the most direct hypernym in the hierarchical structure table; ③ Using commonly accepted free terms and listing them at last. Abbreviations in keywords should be expanded to full forms according to CMeSH.
2.5 Introduction
The introduction should be written in a logical sequence, starting with the description of the problem, followed by the research background, research objectives, research methods and the reasons for choosing those methods, and the formulation of the research hypothesis. The writing should be deductive, standardized, concise and well-structured.
2.6 Methods
2.6.1 Subjects
The diagnostic criteria for patients and the inclusion and exclusion criteria for the study participants should be described. The case selection process for the research subjects should be clearly outlined, and a flowchart conforming to the PRISMA guidelines should be provided.
2.6.2 Study Design
It should be specified whether it is a prospective, retrospective, or cross-sectional survey. The research design should detail the specific type, such as self-pairing, group matching, or crossover design. For clinical trials, the phase, blinding measures, and quality control methods must be indicated. The primary and secondary outcome indicators being observed in the study should be clearly outlined. Additionally, any drugs, equipment, instruments, or tools used in the study should be specifically described, including the full name of the manufacturer (for foreign companies, the country of origin should also be provided).
2.6.3 Statistical Analysis
The statistical analysis should include the software name, version number, and the appropriate statistical methods used, along with specific values of statistics, such as the test statistic, R-values, and 95% confidence interval. Statistical symbols should follow the relevant standards outlined in the national standards GB3358.1~3358.2—2009 "Statistical Vocabulary and Symbols," and all symbols should be italicized.
2.7 Results
The results section should correspond directly to the outcome indicators described in the methods section. For studies involving human subjects, the general demographic characteristics of the participants should be presented first. This should be followed by the primary research results, and finally, the secondary research results.
2.7.1 Heading Hierarchy
Headings in the main body text should be numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals, with a maximum of 4 levels. Digits indicating different levels are separated by a dot, e.g. 1; 1.1; 1.1.1; 1.1.1.1. Headings should be written flush left with one space after the preceding code. Unnumbered paragraphs should have two spaces at the beginning. In the text, hierarchical arrangements can be indicated by ①, ②, etc.
2.7.2 Character and Punctuation
Strict adherence to the "General Standardized Chinese Character Table" published by the State Council in 2013 is required. Medical terms should be based on the terms approved and published by the National Scientific and Technical Terms Committee (formerly known as the National Committee for Standardizing Scientific and Technical Terms). Pharmaceutical terms should comply with the 2020 edition of the "Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China", for which generic or chemical names shall be used instead of trade names. In case of any terms conflicting with the "General Standardized Chinese Character Table," the latter takes precedence.
Punctuation should follow the national standard GB/T 15834—2011 "Punctuation Usage."
2.7.3 Numbers and Units of Measurement
The use of numbers follows the national standard GB/T 15835—2011 "Use of Numbers in Publications". Arabic numerals are used for centuries, decades, years, months, days, times, and for counting and measuring. The writing of percentages should be standardized. When multiplying numerical values with associated units of length, the units should be listed separately for each value.
Units of measurement follow the national standard GB3100~3102—1993 "Quantities and Units."
2.7.4 Tables and Figures
Figure and table headings should be provided in both Chinese and English. Figures and tables should be concise, with correct and standardized design. Figures and tables should be numbered consecutively throughout the manuscript. Tables should adopt a three-line format (top line, header line, and bottom line). Additional information should be placed in Notations. Photographs must have good clarity and contrast. Photographs of gross specimens should include a scale bar in the figure, and histopathological images must indicate the staining method and magnification. If figures or tables are reproduced from other publications, permission must be obtained from the original authors, and a Creative Commons (CC) license must be acquired. The figure and table numbering in the captions should use Arabic numerals followed by a right parenthesis in superscript, such as "1)". For software-generated figures, the source files containing editable text and lines should be provided.
2.7.5 Abbreviations
In general, abbreviations are not used in titles. If used in the text, the full Chinese and English name should be stated first, followed by the Chinese abbreviation or the full English name and its abbreviation in parentheses, separated by a comma. If the abbreviation is common, the full English name may be omitted. For abbreviations of specific terms such as microorganisms, cells, nucleic acids, proteins, genes, etc., their attributes should be indicated after the abbreviation.
2.8 Discussion
The discussion should be directly linked to the research results and should not be written as another literature review. It should begin by presenting the main findings of the study, followed by an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the study compared to other researches. The discussion should also address the strengths and weaknesses of the study itself, highlight unresolved clinical issues, and clearly outline directions for further research.
2.9 Statements
At the end of the article, all authors must fully disclose any potential "Conflict of Interests." If there are no potential conflicts of interest, it should be clearly stated as “No Conflict of Interest”. "Authors' Contributions" must also be included. Furthermore, for papers involving medical ethics, such as those with human participants or animal rights issues, the "Ethics Approval and Patient Consent" or "Ethics Approval and Animal Right" must be added at the end. Please note that these statements should each be presented as independent primary headings without numbering. All headings should be presented in both Chinese and English.
2.10 References
References should be arranged according to the national standard GB/T 7714—2015 "Rules for Citation of Information and Documentation", which should be numbered with Arabic numerals in the upper right corner within square brackets, following the order in which they appear in the text. Primarily use literature published in the latest 3 to 5 years. In this journal, Chinese references should be translated into the corresponding English version under the same number, with the English reference placed after the Chinese one. For references with up to 3 authors, list all authors; for those with more than 3 authors, list the first 3 authors followed by "et al.". References should be published materials. Use the full name of Chinese journal titles; for foreign journal titles, use the abbreviated form according to the "Index Medicus" and include the PMID number. The reference numbers must match the superscript numbers in the text. The reference list should generally not exceed 50 entries.
The references should primarily consist of peer-reviewed research articles. ① Avoid citing from predatory or pseudo-journals. For English-language references without a PMID number, careful verification is required. ② Preprints may be cited in the manuscript, but authors are responsible for tracking these references after submission. If the preprint is not formally published later, it should be removed. ③ For conference proceedings and supplement issues, authors must verify and provide the full text of the paper. References should not include conference proceedings or supplements that only contain abstracts. ④ AI-generated literature should not be cited as references. ⑤ References to retracted publications are not allowed. ⑥ For papers that have not been formally published (OA online-first), the status should be indicated as "in press" or "forthcoming." ⑦ When citing viewpoints from literature reviews, the original source of the viewpoint should be traced.
3. Fees
This journal does not charge a processing fee. However, a publication fee is payable for manuscripts that are accepted after review (RMB 2600 yuan per article). The editorial office will pay a remuneration and send two complimentary copies of the current issue to authors.
Address of the Editorial Office of Journal of Clinical Pediatrics: 1665 Kongjiang Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai; Postal Code: 200092; Email: jcperke@126.com; Official Website: http://jcp.xinhuamed.com.cn. For any matters not covered, please call (021)25076489 for consultation.
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