Authors

Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal & Neonatal is a Plan S compliant Transformative Journal. Transformative Journals are one of the compliance routes offered by cOAlition S funders, such as Wellcome, WHO and UKRI. Find out more about Transformative Journals and Plan S compliance on our Author Hub.

Articles are published under an exclusive licence or non-exclusive licence for UK Crown employees or where BMJ has agreed CC BY applies. For US Federal Government officers or employees acting as part of their official duties, the terms are as stated in accordance with our licence terms. Authors or their employers retain copyright. Open access articles can be reused under the terms of the relevant Creative Commons licence to facilitate reuse of the content; please refer to the Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal & Neonatal Author Licence for the applicable Creative Commons licences. More information on copyright and authors’ rights.

When publishing in ADC: Fetal & Neonatal, authors choose between three licence types – exclusive licence granted to BMJ, CC-BY-NC and CC-BY (Creative Commons open access licences require payment of an article processing charge). As an author you may wish to post your article in an institutional or subject repository, or on a scientific social sharing network. You may also link your published article to your preprint (if applicable). What you can do with your article, without seeking permission, depends on the licence you have chosen and the version of your article. Please refer to the BMJ author self archiving and permissions policies page for more information.

Preprints foster openness, accessibility and collaboration by allowing authors to make their findings immediately available to the research community and receive feedback on an article before it is submitted to a journal for formal publication. BMJ fully supports and encourages the archiving of preprints in any recognised, not-for-profit server such as medRxiv. BMJ does not consider the posting of an article in a dedicated preprint repository to be prior publication.

Preprints are reports of work that have not been peer-reviewed; Preprints should therefore not be used to guide clinical practice, health-related behaviour or health policy. For more information, please refer to our Preprint policy page.

Articles submitted to Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal & Neonatal are subject to peer review. In most instances we aim for two external opinions (and often additional statistical assessment) for reasons of fairness and science. The journal is not prepared to compromise on this stance. The journal operates single anonymised peer review whereby the names of the reviewers are hidden from the author; Manuscripts authored by a member of a journal’s editorial team are independently peer reviewed; an editor will have no input or influence on the peer review process or publication decision for their own article. For more information on what to expect during the peer review process please refer to BMJ Author Hub – the peer review process. BMJ requests that all reviewers adhere to a set of basic principles and standards during the peer-review process in research publication; these are based on the COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers. Please refer to our peer review terms and conditions policy page.

BMJ is committed to transparency. Every article we publish includes a description of its provenance (commissioned or not commissioned) and whether it was internally or externally peer reviewed. During the submission process, authors must not suggest reviewers who are current or recent colleagues of themselves or their co-authors. For more information about suggesting reviewers please visit our Author Hub. Plagiarism is the appropriation of the language, ideas or thoughts of another without crediting their true source and representation of them as one’s own original work. BMJ is a member of CrossCheck by CrossRef and iThenticate. iThenticate is a plagiarism screening service that verifies the originality of content submitted before publication. BMJ runs manuscripts through iThenticate during the peer review process. Authors, researchers and freelancers can also use iThenticate to screen their work before submission by visiting www.ithenticate.com.

If authors choose to publish their article open access, an APC waiver may be available. Before applying for an APC waiver please consider: (1) Does your institution have an open access agreement with BMJ? If it does, then this may cover all or part of the APC for your article. Check BMJ’s open access agreements page to find out whether your institution is a member and what discounts you may be entitled to. (2) Have you received funding from a funder with an open access mandate or policy that covers paying APCs? If so, BMJ expects that the APC will be paid in full. If neither (1) nor (2) above apply then consider (3) Are all the authors of your article based in low-income countries*? If so, you are eligible to apply for a full or partial waiver from BMJ. Visit our author hub to learn more about our waivers policy and how to request one. Please note that regardless of the funding situation, authors can still choose to publish with us at no cost, and articles will be made available to our subscribers. *This list is reviewed annually and is based upon HINARI Core Offer Groups A and B, and the World Bank Country and Lending Groups.

Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal & Neonatal mandates ORCID iDs for the submitting author at the time of article submission; co-authors and reviewers are strongly encouraged to also connect their ScholarOne accounts to ORCID. We strongly believe that the increased use and integration of ORCID iDs will be beneficial for the whole research community.

Please find more information about ORCID and BMJ’s policy on our Author Hub.

Articles for the Paediatric and Perinatal Drug Therapy section should follow the same submission guidelines as the relevant article type, ie, if you are submitting a full original report for the PPDT section it should adhere to the “Original reports” instructions as outlined below.

A rapid response is a moderated but not peer reviewed online response to a published article in ADC Fetal & Neonatal; it will not receive a DOI and will not be indexed. Find out more about responses and how to submit a response.

Please review the below article type specifications including the required article lengths, illustrations, table limits and reference counts. The word count excludes the title page, abstract, tables, acknowledgements, contributions and references. Manuscripts should be as succinct as possible. The journal prefers titles to follow the format ‘field of study: study design’. For example, ‘Early micronutrient intake and cognitive function: a cohort study’.  For further support when making your submission please refer to the resources available on the BMJ Author Hub. Here you will find information on writing and formatting your research through to the peer review process and promoting your paper. You may also wish to use the language editing and translation services provided by BMJ Author Services. BMJ requires that all those designated as authors should meet all four ICMJE criteria for authorship.

• • • Original research
    • Letter
    • Archimedes
    • Images in neonatal medicine
    • Editorial
    • Viewpoint
    • Review
    • Quality improvement
    • Guideline
    • Supplement

These should report original research. (max 3000 words, excluding abstract, tables and figures and references). Research reviews that systematically synthesise evidence (e.g. Systematic reviews, Meta-analysis, Scoping reviews, Mixed methods reviews, etc) should be submitted as Original research. Please include the research type in your title to make the nature of your study clear.The body of the report should be double spaced. The tables should be single spaced and the tables and figures should be at the end of the submission after the references. In keeping with ICMJE guidance, it is essential that RCTs are prospectively registered: under no circumstances will retrospectively registered trials be considered. Title The journal prefers titles to follow the format ‘field of study: study design’. For example, ‘Early micronutrient intake and cognitive function: a cohort study’. Abstract The abstract of an experimental or observational study must clearly state in sequence and in not more than 250 words (i) the main purpose of the study, (ii) the essential elements of the design of the study, (iii) the most important results illustrated by numerical data but not p values, and (iv) the implications and relevance of the results. We require a structured abstract of up to 250 words for reports of randomised controlled trials and meta-analyses, and we encourage it for other studies, where appropriate. The following headings should be used for original research:

• Objective
• Design
• Setting
• Patients
• Interventions
• Main outcome measures
• Results: give numerical data rather than vague statements that drug x produced a better response than drug y. Favour confidence intervals over p values, and give the numerical data on which any p value is based.
• Conclusions: do not make any claims that are not supported by data in the paper in the abstract.

Important considerations

• All research reports involving human subjects must contain a statement about ethics committee approval (or equivalent) at the end of the methods section.
• Illustrations should be used only when data cannot be expressed clearly in any other way. When graphs are submitted the numerical data on which they are based should be uploaded to ScholarOne as a supplementary file.

Please include the key messages of your article after your abstract using the following headings. This section should be no more than 3-5 sentences and should be distinct from the abstract; be succinct, specific and accurate.

• What is already known on this topic – summarise the state of scientific knowledge on this subject before you did your study and why this study needed to be done
• What this study adds – summarise what we now know as a result of this study that we did not know before
• How this study might affect research, practice or policy – summarise the implications of this study

This will be published as a summary box after the abstract in the final published article. It is a journal requirement that the EQUATOR checklist relevant to the study is supplied. Research checklists should be uploaded during the submission process; if these are not applicable to your research please state the reason in your cover letter. Further details of RCTs and systematic reviews. Qualitative research should use the COREQ checklist. Word count: up to 3000 words (excluding title page, abstract, tables, figures, and references) Structured abstract: up to 250 words Tables/Illustrations: up to 5 References: up to 40 Additional material may be considered as data supplements.

The editor encourages submissions of important and topical observations or original exploratory research as a letter to the editor.

Word count: up to 500 words Abstract: not required Tables/Illustrations: up to 2 References: up to 4

To register a question, and to submit completed Archimedes topics, please email bob.phillips@doctors.org.uk first. The creation of such a topic summary follows this process:

• Selection of a clinical scenario
• Definition of the clinical question
• Search for answers
• Appraise the evidence
• Create a critically appraised topic (CAT)
• Summarise as a best evidence topic (BET)

This is a really useful format for trainees, and those who are keen to start publishing, as well as established authors. We would welcome submissions to the above categories should take the form of a striking or clinically important image, as well as up to 250 words of text (and up to 5 references). The text should carry a brief clinical outline, and a clear clinical message or learning point. Two images can be submitted simultaneously, but this will require reducing the word count.

One tip is perhaps to compare the clinical image with Google Images, to ensure that the image is not replicating a well-known appearance. Please ensure that for all Image submissions, you also upload a scanned patient consent form as a supplemental file. Please click here for the Patient Consent Form. If an image is good but describing a well-known appearance: consider the criteria for submitting an Epilogue instead.

These are commentaries commissioned by the editors to provide background and context for published articles.

Word count: up to 1200 words Abstract: not required Tables/Illustrations: up to 2 References: up to 5

These are usually commissioned. Short proposals can be sent in advance to the Editor-in-Chief or Commissioning Editor. Viewpoints should be argument-led but evidence-based. They reflect on issues broader in scope than a specific clinical entity. These issues may be clinical, but Viewpoints can also cover issues in: public health; health policy and law; workforce, education and training; research and research methods; global health; ethics. These articles should not present original research data.

Authors: max three Abstract: None Word count: max 1200 Figures/Tables: max one, small References: max seven

Reviews should provide a balanced account of all aspects of a subject related to paediatrics or child health. Reviews are usually clinical. The pros and cons of any contentious or uncertain aspect should be described. Research reviews that systematically synthesise evidence (e.g. Systematic reviews, Meta-analysis, Scoping reviews, Mixed methods reviews, etc) are classified by the journal as Original research and must be submitted as such. Reviews are often commissioned. Please contact the Commissioning Editor or the relevant section editor to discuss ideas. They are listed on the Editorial Board.

Authors: no limit, international collaborations encouraged Abstract: max 250 words Word count: max 3000 Figures/Tables: encouraged References: max 40

F&N is interested in and will consider sending statement guidance from specialist groups out for review. Prerequisites for guidelines include: that they provide current or evolving neonatal and paediatric clinical practice updates; that they include consensus statements and guidance to improve clinical decision making process; that their development involved peer review; that the author groups include relevant professional groups; that they include parent and/or patient representatives and that a recognised process (for example, Delphi) has been used during the process.

Word count: unlimited; will be determined by the editor Abstract: 250-350 words Tables/Illustrations: unlimited; will be determined by the editor References: unlimited; will be determined by the editor

The BMJ Publishing Group journals are willing to consider publishing supplements to regular issues. Supplement proposals may be made at the request of:

• The journal editor, an editorial board member or a learned society may wish to organise a meeting, sponsorship may be sought and the proceedings published as a supplement.
• The journal editor, editorial board member or learned society may wish to commission a supplement on a particular theme or topic. Again, sponsorship may be sought.
• The BMJPG itself may have proposals for supplements where sponsorship may be necessary.
• A sponsoring organisation, often a pharmaceutical company or a charitable foundation, that wishes to arrange a meeting, the proceedings of which will be published as a supplement.

In all cases, it is vital that the journal’s integrity, independence and academic reputation is not compromised in any way.