ISSN 2709-7927
versión online

INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS

• Scope and Editorial Policy
• Manuscript Format and Preparation
• Manuscript Submission

The Center's Acta Médica is published electronically and adheres to the open access policy. Its mission is to disseminate, locally, nationally, and internationally, scientific production in the area of ​​Health Sciences to contribute to the training and scientific development of its readers, healthcare professionals and all those interested in improving their medical literacy. To this end, it adopts a continuous publication format, publishing full-text articles in Spanish.
The journal is certified as a Scientific-Technological Serial Publication as it meets the certification requirements set forth in Resolution 59/2003 of the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment of the Republic of Cuba.

The Center's Acta Médica only publishes articles that are not under review by any other scientific journal. In the case of an article for publication that has been presented at an academic event or disclosed in another publication medium, the author must inform the Editorial Board. Manuscripts previously available on recognized preprint servers (MedRXiv, ArXiv, PubMed Central, SciELO Preprints) are accepted. The journal assumes no responsibility for the ideas expressed by authors and does not contain or accept advertising materials.

Articles submitted to Acta Médica del Centro undergo a double-blind peer review process in which neither the reviewer nor the author has any information that allows them to be identified. Special care is taken to comply with established ethical standards to avoid conflicts of interest (however, the journal accepts the opening of peer review). Acta Médica del Centro collaborates with external reviewers outside its editorial team and who do not belong to the sponsoring institution.

The corresponding author will receive notification of receipt of the manuscript, including their identification number, which they must use from that moment on in all correspondence. Within two weeks, the Editorial Board will conduct the initial review to determine the relevance of the topic and whether the manuscript complies with the Publication Standards. If the article presents essential deficiencies or does not address a topic of interest to the journal, it will be rejected. If the deficiencies are merely formal, it will be returned to the author for correction before beginning the evaluation process. The date of receipt of the article will not begin to be counted until it has been properly received.
It is then submitted to the reviewers, who will have four weeks to complete their review. Their conclusions will be evaluated by the Editor, who will determine whether the article is accepted, accepted with modifications, or rejected.

The observations and suggestions of the Editorial Board and the reviewers will be sent to the corresponding author, who must respond as soon as possible (maximum one month).

The receipt and registration of the manuscript is only the initial step in the editorial selection process and does not necessarily lead to acceptance for publication. The final decision rests exclusively with the Editorial Board, which reserves the right to select the articles for publication and to make stylistic modifications while respecting the original content.

The Center's Medical Acta publishes Editorials, Original Articles, Case Reports, Communications, Letters to the Editor, Review Articles, articles on Culture and Medicine, and Clinical Pathology Sessions. The following details the characteristics of each of these articles and provides instructions for submitting abstracts, figures, tables, bibliographic references, etc.

ORIGINAL ARTICLES

Original research articles. This category includes articles on basic science, epidemiological, qualitative, and mixed (quantitative and qualitative) studies, as well as those related to technological innovations.
These articles will have a maximum length of 6,000 words (excluding the abstract, figure legends, acknowledgments, and references), and tables and figures should be up to eight and no more than six authors.

Abstract: structured, up to 250 words (Introduction, Objective, Methods, Results, Conclusions).

Introduction: Indicate the context or background of the research (e.g., the nature of the problem and its importance) and state the specific purpose or objective of the research or the hypothesis being tested in the study or observation.

Methods: This section is written in the past tense and can have the following structure.
- Design and population:
• Type of study and research design.
• Time period and sites where the research was conducted.
• Selection of participants (universe, samples, selection criteria, number of participants in each group studied).
- Study variables: Variables considered and their definition.
- Procedures/data collection and management:
• Methods used for the assessments and their timing.
• Equipment and reagents (name, brand, country).
Published methods should be referenced; only relevant modifications should be described.
- Statistical Analysis:
• Describe the statistical methods in sufficient detail to allow verification of the results against the data.
• Report indicators of error or uncertainty (such as confidence intervals).
• Avoid relying solely on statistical hypothesis testing, such as the use of p values, which does not provide information about the magnitude of the effect.
• Specify the software used and its version.
For more information on the selection and correct reporting of statistical methods, see the Statistical Analyses and Methods in the Published Literature (SAMPL Guidelines).
- Ethical Considerations:
Research involving human subjects must be conducted in accordance with the Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects (Declaration of Helsinki) established by the World Medical Association.
Declare the approval of the research by the institution's ethics committee. It is the author's responsibility to retain the ethics committee approval documents, informed consent, and primary records used with the data; Editors may request these.

Results: Present the results following the logical sequence of the variables studied. Do not repeat all the data from tables or illustrations in the text; summarize only the most important observations; do not duplicate data in graphs and tables; use graphs as an alternative to tables with many entries. Provide numerical results, not only derived results (e.g., percentages) but also the absolute numbers from which they were calculated, and specify the statistical methods used to analyze them. If you include information from data not shown, these may be requested by the journal.
Discussion: Highlight new and important aspects of the research. Do not repeat in detail data that appear in the Introduction or Results, and do not introduce new data not presented in the Results. Compare and contrast the results with those of other relevant studies. State the limitations of the study and include suggestions for further research to address aspects not addressed, as well as your recommendations for future development of the topic.
Conclusions: Address the study's objectives in accordance with the results and discussion. Avoid making sweeping statements and drawing conclusions that are not adequately supported by data. Write in the present tense.
Bibliographic references: Up to 30 (60% of the bibliography consulted must be from the last five years for journals and 10 years for books).
Conflict of interest: Declare whether or not there is a conflict of interest.
Author contributions: Declare each author's personal contribution to the research, using the CRediT Taxonomy.

CASE REPORTS

Case reports are important in the recognition of new or rare diseases and in the evaluation of therapeutic or harmful effects and costs of interventions. They describe one or more clinical cases (short case series) that are exceptionally difficult to observe, difficult to diagnose, or have an atypical presentation that pose a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. Together with a brief and pertinent review of the literature, they represent an important contribution to the understanding of the pathophysiology or other aspects of the process.
It is suggested that authors review the Consensus-based Clinical Case Reporting Guideline Development (CARE) before submitting their report. These articles should have a maximum length of 3,000 words (excluding the abstract, figure legends, acknowledgments, and references), up to five figures, and no more than three authors, or up to five in highly justified cases.

The words "case report" should appear in the title.
Abstract: Introduction (What is unique about this case? What does it contribute?). Patient information should include the main symptoms and important clinical findings, the main diagnoses, therapeutic interventions, and outcomes. Conclusions (What were the main lessons learned from the case?).
Introduction: Briefly summarize the background of the case, referencing the relevant medical literature. What is unique about this case? What does it contribute to the medical literature?
Patient information: Provide demographic information and main symptoms; describe clinical findings, diagnostic evaluation, therapeutic intervention, follow-up, and outcomes.
Discussion: Describe the strengths and limitations of the management of this case; Analyze and compare the main findings with those of other cases reported in the relevant medical literature; justify the conclusions and main lessons that can be drawn from this case report.
Bibliographic references: Up to 15 (60% of the bibliography consulted must be from the last five years for journals and 10 years for books).
Conflict of interest: Declare whether or not a conflict of interest exists.

COMMUNICATIONS

Short communications are short scientific articles that aim to present a hypothesis, partial or definitive results of a research project, advances in diagnostic or treatment techniques, or other observations of interest to the scientific community and that justify their rapid publication.
These articles should have a maximum length of 3,000 words, not including references, no more than two tables or figures, and up to three authors.
Structured abstract, Introduction (brief, maximum one page, including the objective), Methods, Results, Discussion (should not be too long, maximum one page, expressing your final considerations), and Conclusions.
Bibliographic references: up to 15 (60% of the bibliography consulted should be from the last five years for journals and 10 years for books).
Conflict of interest: declare whether or not there is a conflict of interest.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The Editorial Committee encourages readers of Acta Médica del Centro to submit comments, considerations, or objections regarding articles published in the journal. Letters are received within four weeks of the publication of the article they refer to and will be sent to the author, who will have two weeks to respond; once the response is published, no further correspondence will be accepted. They must be written in appropriate language, respecting the ethical guidelines of the profession, although this does not preclude ethical criticism of concepts, methodologies, results, and interpretations.
Articles addressed to the editor with the aim of informing them of a relevant fact from a scientific, educational, or healthcare perspective that merits publication in the journal will also be accepted.
Letters have a maximum length of 3,000 words, not including references, which may be up to 10, a table or figure, and up to three authors.

REVIEW ARTICLES

These are articles that analyze a topic in detail, selectively, and critically, from its earliest appearances in the world literature to the current state of knowledge on the subject. This is not just a passive and more or less thorough review of the literature, but an active review that adds something beyond what everyone could gain from reading previously published work. Clarifying tables and illustrations may therefore be included.
These articles will have a maximum length of 5,000 words (excluding the abstract, figure legends, and references), with tables and figures by up to six and no more than three authors.

Abstract: structured, up to 250 words (Introduction, Objective, Method, Conclusions).
Introduction: Define the current state of the topic and how it fare in the national, regional, or global context. Substantiate the scientific problem that gave rise to the review and clearly describe the objectives of the work, the importance and usefulness of the review.
Methods:
- Eligibility criteria: Specify the characteristics of the report according to the eligibility criteria used to conduct the review (e.g., years considered, languages, publication status), providing justification.
- Information sources: Describe all information sources used in the search (e.g., databases, search dates, and date of the last search performed). Criteria and justification for the selection of sources consulted. Number of articles by type (original articles, theses, systematic reviews, etc.).
- Literature search: Present the complete electronic search strategy for at least one database, including the limits used (e.g., period reviewed, language, etc.), so that it can be repeated. State the terms (descriptors or keywords), search engines used, number of articles consulted, and number of articles selected. Specify the document selection criteria (determined by the objectives of the review, i.e., the research question the article seeks to answer; the methodological and scientific quality, reliability, and validity of the selected articles will also be taken into account).
Development: The results and discussion will be written together and will form the fundamental basis of the article.
- Provide the number of studies evaluated, assessed for eligibility, and included in the review, with the reasons for exclusions at each stage, ideally with a flowchart.
- Summarize the main results based on the strongest evidence.
- Discuss divergences or similarities with other research on the topic, limitations in the research, and gaps in knowledge.
- Express your critical opinion on the reviewed topic.
- Include figures and tables that highlight relevant aspects, without repeating information.
Conclusions: Clearly address the defined objective. Propose possible applications of current knowledge based on the information compiled. Provide a general interpretation of the results in the context of other evidence and implications for future research.
References: Up to 50 (75% of the references consulted must be from the last five years for journals and 10 years for books).
Conflicts of interest: Declare whether or not there are any conflicts of interest.

CULTURE AND MEDICINE

This section is dedicated to a variety of topics from different medical specialties related to history and art. These articles must be accompanied by an unstructured abstract indicating the objective, methodology used, main contributions, and conclusions of the research. The body of the article should present a brief and clear background, as well as the scope, originality, and importance of the topic, the objective of the research, and the research method used. It should include a critical analysis of the sources consulted and present concrete conclusions that reflect the research objective.
The article can be structured as Introduction, Development, and Conclusions. However, this section does not have a fixed structure, so authors are permitted to organize the article into sections according to their convenience and creativity, to facilitate the development and understanding of the topic. Any type of article related to this section may be included. These articles will have a maximum length of 3,500 words, excluding references (up to 15), figures and tables (up to three), and no more than three authors.

CLINICAL PATHOLOGY SESSION

This section will publish clinical cases, in the form of clinical pathological discussions, selected for their clinical relevance and interest in the differential diagnosis process.
These articles will have a maximum length of 6,000 words (excluding the abstract, figure legends, and references), figures and tables (up to 10), and no more than 10 authors.

Abstract: unstructured.
Case presentation: X-rays and other imaging techniques necessary for the discussion may be provided (maximum three pages).
Clinical discussion: includes the differential diagnosis and the clinical diagnosis based on the most relevant criteria of the session participants.
Pathological discussion: macroscopic and microscopic findings complemented by images (microphotographs must contain scale markers and the staining method used), and a brief review of the topic, which may include aspects such as history, evolution, classification, characteristics, epidemiology, pathogenesis, etiology, peculiarities, treatment perspectives, etc.
Final diagnosis: direct cause of death, intermediate cause of death, underlying cause of death, and other diagnoses.
References: up to 20 (60% of the references consulted must be from the last five years for journals and 10 years for books).
Conflict of interest: declare whether or not there is a conflict of interest.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION

The manuscript must be formatted in the following manner: Verdana 12 font, 1.0 line spacing, and a 2cm margin, without indentations, tabs, or any other design attributes such as centered headings, spaces between paragraphs, page breaks, and separate pages, among others. Pages must be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals in the lower right corner.

Title: In Spanish and English (no more than 15 words). It should reflect the content of the manuscript without creating unjustified expectations about its scope. It should not include acronyms or abbreviations (except MeSH terms, e.g., HIV). If institutional names are used, they must be official and up-to-date.

Abstract: It should be written in the past tense, should not contain bibliographic citations or abbreviations, and must be accompanied by an English version (abstract). The structured abstract should be up to 250 words and include the headings: Introduction, Objective, Methods, Results, and Conclusions. The unstructured abstract should be up to 150 words long.

Keywords: These should be specific and representative of the semantic content of the document, both in the main and secondary content. There should be at least three keywords. It is recommended to use the Descriptors in Health Sciences (DeCS) and should be accompanied by their English version, obtained from Medical Subject Headings (MeSH).

Tables: These should be referenced in the text, numbered consecutively according to the Arabic numeral system, and with a small title at the top. The table caption should include the legend, asterisk, note, and source (in that order, without the word "legend"). Unusual abbreviations should be explained, and the following symbols should be used in the order presented: *, †, ‡, §, ||, ¶, **, ††, ‡‡. Statistical measures of dispersion, such as standard deviation or standard error of the mean, must be appropriately identified. The content must be self-explanatory, and the data provided should not repeat information provided in the text or figures. Figures containing limited data may be commented on in the text rather than appearing as tables. The format will be basic table 1, and tables in image format are not accepted. Decimal numbers must be separated by commas, not periods. Graphs will be used as an alternative to tables.

Figures: These include graphs, photographs, and diagrams in digital format (JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF) with an appropriate resolution, referenced in the text and numbered consecutively using the Arabic numeral system. They should be as self-explanatory as possible, but detailed explanations should be included in the legend, not in the body of the figures. Any symbols, arrows, or letters included should stand out clearly from the background. The internal scale must be specified, and the coloring method for the photomicrographs must be identified. Graphs and diagrams must be submitted in an editable format.
If photographs of people are used, they must not be identifiable, or they must be accompanied by written permission permitting their use. If a previously published figure is used, the original source must be identified, and permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the material must be sent with the manuscript. Unless the document is in the public domain, this permission is required regardless of the author or publisher.

Abbreviations: Avoid the improper use of abbreviations. Those used should be widely used and, when appearing for the first time in the text, should be preceded by the full term.

Units of measurement: Metric units (meters, kilograms, or liters) or their decimal multiples should be used for measurements of length, height, weight, and volume. Temperature should be expressed in degrees Celsius. All clinical laboratory results should be reported in SI units or SI units permitted by SI. Commas, not periods, should be used for decimal expressions.

Acknowledgments: Individuals who contributed to the research but whose contributions do not justify authorship should be acknowledged, and the type of contribution made should be stated. For example, translation assistance, scientific advisor, reviewer, data collector, statistical advisor, etc. Any support received through grants or other financial assistance should also be indicated here. When deemed necessary, the individuals, centers, or entities that collaborated or supported the research should be cited. It is the author's responsibility to request authorization from the individuals and institutions to be mentioned. These should be located after the Conclusions.

Bibliographic References: Citations should be up-to-date, with more than 60% from the last five years for journals and 10 years for books. They should be delimited by

- http://bvs.sld.cu/revistas/recursos/vancouver_2012.pdf
- https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK7256/ (Citing Medicine)
- http://www2.bg.am.poznan.pl/czasopisma/medicus.php?lang=eng (Index Medicus - abbreviations of journal titles)

Below are the most frequently used examples in bibliographic references according to the Vancouver Standards.

- Journal Article. Authors. Title of article. Journal. Year; Volume: Pages.
Up to six authors, all authors should be listed; if there are more than six, the first six should be included, adding the Latin particle "et al." Example:
Sarria-Estrada S, Acevedo C, Mitjana R, Frascheri L, Siurana S, Auger C, et al. Reproducibility of the qualitative assessment of temporal lobe atrophy by MRI. Radiology. 2015;57(3):225-228.

- Book. Author(s). Book title. Edition. City: Publisher; Year.
Cite specific pages if applicable. Example:
Álvarez Álvarez G. Medical duty topics. Havana: Ciencias Médicas; 2003.

- Book chapter. Chapter authors. Chapter title. In: Authors or Editors. Book title. Edition. City: Publisher; Year. Pages. Example:
Béquer García EA, Caballero López A, Martín García L, Linares Borges A. Antimicrobials. In: Caballero López A. Intensive care. 2nd ed. Havana: Medical Sciences; 2009. pp. 1570-1636.

- Thesis. Author. Title [thesis]. City: Name of institution; Year. Example:
Chumi Buenaño A. Postoperative nausea and vomiting with spinal anesthesia for elective general surgery [thesis]. Santa Clara: Arnaldo Milián Castro Clinical and Surgical University Hospital; 2016.

- Online journal article. Example:
Hernández Rivero O, Risquet Águila D, Hernández Rivero O, León Álvarez M, Pérez Fernández A, Ballate Machado D. Intersectoral care for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. Acta Méd Centro [Internet]. 2016 [cited 07/21/2016]; 10(2):8-16. Available at: http://www.revactamedicacentro.sld.cu/index.php/amc/article/view/437/633

- Online monograph. Example:
Foley KM, Gelband H, editors. Improving palliative care for cancer [Internet]. Washington: National Academy Press; 2006 [accessed 07/09/2007]. Available at: http://www.nap.edu/books/0309074029/html/

- Web page of a website. Example:
Cancer-Pain.org [Internet]. New York: Association of Cancer Online Resources, Inc.; c2000-01 [updated 05/16/2002; accessed 07/09/2002]. Available at: http://www.cancer-pain.org/

Conflict of interest: Authors must declare, after the bibliographic references, whether or not there is a conflict of interest related to the submitted article.

Author contribution: Declaration of each author's personal contribution to the research, mandatory for all original research articles. It must be written using the CRediT Taxonomy (a project developed by CASRAI). For more information, review the Methodology for implementing the CRediT taxonomy in scientific journals of the national health system.

Appendices: must be cited in the text and are located after the references.

Supplementary Material: Authors may enrich their manuscript with additional images, multimedia files, or other materials that do not fit the format of the type of article being submitted, but that facilitate its understanding.
Audio or video clips:
- Should logically refer to key aspects of the article or research.
- Anonymous (do not include any identifying information).
- Light (less than 5 MB) and approximately two minutes long.
- In AVI, MPEG, MPG, and MP3 formats.
- A brief description of each audio or video sequence should be included after the figure caption.
- They will only be included in the publication at the discretion of the Editor.

The Center's Acta Médica supports international initiatives to optimize the quality of scientific publications by promoting the transparent and accurate presentation of research and recommends that authors consult the guidelines compiled by the EQUATOR Network (Enhancing the Quality and Transparency of Health Research) for writing and publishing scientific papers on health research. Some of these guidelines are listed below.
- CONSORT: for presenting randomized controlled trials
- STARD: for presenting diagnostic accuracy studies
- STROBE: for presenting observational studies
- COREQ: Consolidated Criteria for the Publication of Qualitative Research
- CARE: for presenting Case Reports
- PRISMA: for presenting systematic reviews and meta-analyses
Adherence to the recommended guidelines will facilitate manuscript review, increase the likelihood of publication, and increase the likelihood that your study findings will be used in subsequent research and clinical practice.

The Center's Medical Act promotes increased transparency, credibility, and reuse of research data. Authors are encouraged to share any material used during their research that may constitute a valuable resource for other research through specialized servers (Xenodo, DataCite, SciELO Data).

The Center's Acta Médica has an online manuscript management system, for which you must be registered as an "Author" on the journal's website. To register, click here. With this system, you can track your manuscript through the different stages of the editorial process.
To ensure blind peer review, manuscripts must be submitted in two or more separate files: Cover Letter, Manuscript, and Supplementary Material.

The Cover Letter or First Page must state:

• Section of the journal in which you intend to publish.
• Title in Spanish and English (no more than 15 words).
• Authors: The full names and surnames of all authors must appear (avoid initials); as well as their professional title, scientific degree, academic degree, teaching category, research category, institutional affiliation (department or service, institution, municipality, province, country), email address, and the ORCID digital identifier. Indicate the corresponding author.
• If the manuscript is not unpublished, when it was made public or where it is available. Manuscripts previously available on recognized preprint servers (MedRXiv, ArXiv, PubMed Central, SciELO Preprints) are accepted.
• The manuscript must not be under review by any other scientific journal.
• The authors acknowledged in the acknowledgments authorize their inclusion.

The manuscript must not contain any identifying information about the authors and must adhere to the journal's publication standards for each section. Otherwise, it may be rejected without peer review. Ensure that any manuscript submitted to the Center's Acta Médica complies with the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical and Health Sciences Journals established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) (versión en español).