General aspects

Below we share different formal aspects that all manuscripts submitted to any section of the journal must comply with in order to be considered for refereeing or review.

Manuscript submission

Authors should submit their manuscripts through the Open Journal System (OJS) platform used by ASEI for the editorial processing of manuscripts and through which communication with authors will be maintained during the editorial process. A detailed description of the steps to follow is provided in the section "How to submit a manuscript." 

It is important to upload in the platform the complete data of all the manuscript author team members (name and surname; institution to which they belong, with their corresponding city and country data; e-mail and ORCID code if they have it).

Text files should be submitted in Word format or equivalent. 

The characteristics of the graphic elements (tables, figures, graphs, charts, images, etc.) are detailed in point c) of this section.

Page size: A4

Margins: 2.5 cm (0.98 inches)

Line spacing: 1.5

Page lines: Use this processor function for all text files (except cover page and graphic element files in Word or other programs). 

Paging: Indicate the number of pages in the upper right margin of each page.

It is important to clearly differentiate the different headings and subheadings that organize the reading of the article.

Manuscripts should include the following items: 

a) Title page 

b) Body of the article:

• Abstract and Keywords
• Main text
• Bibliographic References

c) Graphic elements (tables, figures, graphs, charts, images, etc.)

 

a) Title page

It should be submitted in Word and include the following elements:

• Title in English and Spanish: should be concise and informative. Avoid unnecessary use of capital letters. Maximum length: 120 characters including spaces.
• Short title or “running title”. Maximum length: 40 characters including spaces.
• The name of the section of the journal for which you are submitting, which must coincide with the one selected in the manuscript submission platform. 
• The name and surname of each author, with his/her highest academic degree(s) and institutional affiliation (including the name of the department(s), city and country) and his/her permanent digital researcher identifier called ORCID (click on the link to learn how to obtain it).
• Mailing address and e-mail address of the author responsible for correspondence of the manuscript.  
• Source(s) of financing: financial support, equipment and/or medicines. 
• The number of graphic elements accompanying the manuscript.
• Number of words in the manuscript (excluding abstract and bibliographical references).

 

b) Body of the article

Abstract and Keywords

Both elements should be presented in a single-page Word document and have the following characteristics:

Abstract

• Mandatory for all sections of the journal with the exception of Editorial, bibliographic comments and Letters to the Editorial Committee.
• Written in Spanish and English. (It is recommended not to use automatic translation programs, since it is detrimental to the quality and interpretability of the text).
• Length:  

Original Articles, Brief Communications, Systematic Reviews and Review Articles sections: between 50 and 250 words.

Case Reports and Images in Infectious Diseases sections: between 50 and 150 words.

Key words

• They should be placed below the abstract in Spanish and in the English version.
• Quantity: minimum 3 and maximum 5.
• Words can be simple or compound. E.g.: "HIV" or "Breast cancer."
• Preferably use the terms proposed in the Health Sciences Descriptor List (DeCS). This list will provide you with the standardized terms in Spanish and their equivalent in English.

 

Main text

The structure for each type of article is detailed in the Sections heading.

 

Bibliographic References

References should be numbered consecutively in the same order in which they are mentioned in the body of the text. Use the Vancouver style, examples of which are given below. 

They must be identified by calls with Arabic numerals, placed in parentheses: (10). Do not indicate references by inserting footnotes using superscripts.

 

Journal names should be abbreviated according to the editorial style used in Index Medicus. Check “List of Journals Indexed in Index Medicus”, which can be found at: ftp://nlmpubs.nlm.nih.gov/online/journals/lsiweb.pdf 

 

Example 1 (magazine): List the first six authors followed by et. al.

Halpern SD, Ubel PA, Caplan AL. Solid-organ transplantation in HIV-infected patients. N Engl J Med. 2002 Jul 25; 347(4): 284-7.

 

As an option, if a magazine has continuous paging by volume (as most magazines do) the month and issue number can be omitted.

 

Halpern SD, Ubel PA, Caplan AL. Solid-organ transplantation in HIV-infected patients. N Engl J Med. 2002; 347: 284-7.

 

Example 2 (book):

Ringsven MK, Bond D. Gerontology and leadership skills for nurses. 2nd ed. Albany (NY): Delmar Publishers; 1996.

 

Example 3 (book chapter):

Phillips SJ, Whisnant JP. Hypertension and stroke. In: Laragh JH, Brenner BM, editors. Hypertension: pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management. 2nd ed. New York: Raven Press; 1995, p. 465-78.

 

Example 4 (abstract):

Mosier D, Picchio G, Sabbe R, Lederman M, Offord R. Host and Viral Factors Influence CCR5 Receptor Blockade. 7th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infection. San Francisco. January 30-February 2, 2000 [abstract 497].

 

More information on sample references can be found at: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html  

 

 

c) Graphic elements

Images

Images can be illustrations, figures, maps, photographs.

They should be sent as separate files from the manuscript and not inserted in the body of the article, identified with the name used for reference in the body of the article (e.g., Map 1, Chart 2, etc.). 

Image formats supported: gif, jpg, tiff, ppt, ai. 

Title and caption: Should be transcribed in the body of the article after the bibliographic references, double-spaced, on a separate page and with Arabic numerals corresponding to the number of each type of image.

When symbols, arrows, numbers or letters are used to identify parts within the illustration, identify and explain each clearly in the caption. Explain the interior scales and identify the method of coloring used in the microphotographs.

 

Tables or charts

Insert tables after the bibliographic references and on a separate page. Number them consecutively in the order of appearance of the citations in the body of the article with a short title and caption (if applicable). 

Each column should contain a corresponding label (heading) with a short or abbreviated text. 

Locate all explanatory material in footnotes at the bottom of the chart. Explain in the footnotes all non-standardized abbreviations used in each. Use the following symbols, in the same order, as callouts for chart footnotes: *, †, ‡, §, ||, ¶, **, ††, ‡‡, etc. 

The source of data should be indicated at the bottom of the graphic element only when it is secondary.

The graphs should be self-explanatory and presented in an Excel document, with their coordinates identified with the name of the variable represented and indicating the "n" if applicable.

For the publication of graphic elements already published, the corresponding authorization from the author and the editor of the journal in which it was first published must be submitted.

 

Abbreviations and symbols

Use standard abbreviations only. Avoid abbreviations in the title and abstract. The full term represented by the abbreviation must precede the abbreviation the first time it appears in the body of the text, unless it is a standard unit of measurement.

 

Inclusive language

Stigma is a social and cultural experience and is based on beliefs. At the same time, it is a condition, trait or behavior that causes the person who carries it to be included in a degraded, unacceptable or inferior social category. 

The acts that are generated as a consequence of these beliefs translate into discriminatory behaviors. In that sense, stigma and infectious diseases have existed for many years as a result of fear, ignorance and the difficulty of talking about certain taboo subjects. 

On the other hand, language shapes beliefs and can influence behaviors, building a culture and feeding back into it. Thus, the thoughtful use of appropriate language has the power to strengthen the global response to infectious diseases as well as to avoid the stigma associated with them. That is why the ASEI Journal adheres to the principles of inclusive language for the writing of a manuscript, since language reflects the reality in which we live, and at the same time, constructs it. 

In order to facilitate reading comprehension and avoid binary and reductionist categorization of genders, the use of @, X, e and the simultaneous use of Spanish feminine and masculine pronouns (la/el, las/los) is not encouraged. But we do strongly encourage the use of inclusive language.

We remember that each word we choose gives us the opportunity to stop reproducing stereotypes, stigmatizations and myths or to include those who are excluded from the common use of language.

 

Therefore, we suggest the following expressions: