There are roughly the following types of medical articles in journals:
Studies/research articles, Case reports, Clinics.
A. Studies/research articles
The structure of a research article is, generally, the following:
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Title;
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Authors;
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Authors’ Affiliations;
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Editor’s Note (in American journals);
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Summary;
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Introduction;
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Materials/Patients and Methods;
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Results;
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Comment (American)/Discussion (British);
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References.
1. Title
The title should be concise, but informative, containing the key words for the paper.
It must also be specific. Compare “An investigation of mast cell functioning” to ” The role of mast cells in the pathogenesis of allergic rhinitis”
How can you create a title?
A. One way of creating a title:
1. general field of inquiry;
2. colon or dash;
3. specific details.
Myxoma of the temporal bone: An uncommon neoplasm
Laryngeal Cancer Patients: Analysis of Patient Delay at Different Tumour Stages
Inpatient management of epistaxis: Outcomes and cost
B. Another: state the main point
of the investigation
Influence of the Macroscopic features of Vocal Fold Polyps on the Quality of Voice: A Retrospective Review of 101 Cases
Impact of Young Age on Prognosis for Head and Neck Cancer: A Matched- Pair Analysis
The pattern of the study is indicated by such expressions that can be used in the title:
Treatment of…
Measurement of…
Effect of…on….
Role of…
Trial of….
Investigation of…
Evaluation of…
Assessment of…
Impact of…
Diagnosis of…
Study of…
Management of…
Implications of…for…
Contribution of…
Survey of…
Analysis of…
Influence of…
C. Y et another:
A problem is presented, followed or preceded by the description of the cause.
Spontaneous haematoma of the pharynx due to a rare drug interaction
Carbon monoxide poisoning: an unusual cause of dizziness.
A report of CSF leak as a complication of nasal packing for epistaxis
Grisel’s syndrome-a rare complication following “small” operations and infections in the ENT region.
Note the frequent reference to the site of a disease or analysis. If you are dealing with carcinoma, you will say whether it is in the larynx or the pharynx. Similarly, you may have to state the parameters of your study in the title by referring to the nature or location of the population.
Consider the examples:
Adult acute epiglottitis: Experiences in a Taiwanese setting
Outcome of adenotonsillectomy for obstructive sleep apnoea in children under 3 years.
If the article is a debate or discussion of a certain issue, the title will contain a question mark. The question mark may also indicate that the article suggests an answer to a long- debated medical issue.
Oropharyngoesophageal scintigraphy in the diagnostic algorithm of laryngopharyngeal reflux disease: A useful exam?
Cholesterol granuloma of the temporal bone: a pathological designation or a clinical diagnosis?
As for the use of capitals in the title, it depends on the style of the journal. As you can see in the examples, some journals adopt the classical title style, with capitals in all the title, others write the title as a sentence. Some use capitals after the colon, some don’t.
Alăptarea şi hepatita C
Daniela Stan, Mihai Mitran
Laptele de sân este o alimentaţie foarte importantă pentru copil în primele şase luni de viaţă. Din păcate, alăptarea implică, în unele cazuri, şi transmiterea hepatitei de la mamă la copil. Hepatita de tip C este paucisimptomatică sau asimptomatică, cu o formă uşoară de icter. La majoritatea pacienţilo...
Hepatita B şi sarcina
Daniela Stan, Mihai Mitran
Se manifestă un interes continuu în problema hepatitei virale cronice în timpul sarcinii, interes determinat de incidenţa crescândă în timp a cazurilor la femei însărcinate şi de progresul destul de avansat în managementul acestei boli care prezintă complicaţii majore în cursul sarcinii. Transmisia perinatală...
Sindromul ovarelor polichistice. Fertilitatea ca dovadă a echilibrului energetic
Monica Făgărăşanu, Bogdan Panaite, Roxana Bodea, Dan Udrea, Monica-Mihaela Cîrstoiu
În prezent, sindromul ovarelor polichistice (SOP) este cea mai frecventă endocrinopatie ginecologică din cadrul categoriei femeilor de vârstă reproductivă, afectând aproximativ 4-12%. Primele date despre SOP au apă...
The Anatomy of a Medical paper (IV)
Iulia Dumitrăchescu
The Methods section should be straightforward and describe exactly what you did. If necessary, it can be subdivided into sections. Give the details of your clinical and technical procedures. Clearly show how and why you chose your observational or experimental subjects (patients or laboratory animals, inc...
The anatomy of a medical article (III)
Iulia Dumitrăchescu
According to Tim Albert in The A-Z of Medical Writing, “the typical introduction consists of two or three paragraphs. Despite what many people think, the first sentence is generally dull and can be divided into three types: (1) the Seminar Approach (‘Left-handedness is a condition affecting 10% of the populat...