Authors Guidelines

The Rhinologist  is an international  journal dedicated to the advancement of patient care in otolaryngology–head and neck pathology. Published on behalf of the Italian Rhinology Academy, the Journal publishes original articles relating to both the clinical and basic science aspects of otolaryngology.  The Rhinologist   reserves the right to exclusive publication of all accepted manuscripts. We will not consider any manuscript previously published nor under review by another publication. Once accepted for review, the manuscript must not be submitted elsewhere.  Unethical publishing, such as plagiarism, undisclosed conflicts of interest, inappropriate authorship, and duplicate publication are forbidden. This includes publication in a non-otolaryngology journal or in another language. In case of doubt, disclosure is essential and the Editor is available for consultation. Transfer of copyright to is a prerequisite of publication. All authors must sign a Copyright Transfer Agreement form.

Authors must disclose any financial relationship(s) at the time of submission, and any disclosures must be updated by the authors prior to publication. Information that could be perceived as potential conflict(s) of interest must be stated. This information includes, but is not limited to, grants or funding, employment, affiliations, patents, etc…

Article Categories

The Rhinologist publishes the types of articles defined below. When submitting your manuscript, please follow the instructions relevant to the applicable article category. A title page, including the manuscript title and all author’s full names, academic degrees, institutional affiliations, and locations. Designate one author as the corresponding author. If a paper was presented at a meeting, provide society name, city, state, country, and the exact date of the meeting.

Article Types

Original Reports

Present data that have not yet been published. An emphasis is given for higher levels of evidence.

Abstract (250 words) with the headings: Objective, Study Design, Methods, Results, and Conclusion KeyWords, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results Discussion Conclusion Acknowledgments (grants and research support; contributors to the article but who do not qualify for authorship according to the ICMJE) References
Word count: 3000 words (abstract – conclusion)

References: 75 references (max)

Figures/Tables: No more than a total of 8 figures and tables, Multi-paneled figures will be counted as multiple figures, Tables with > 6 columns will be counted as multiple tables.

Contemporary Reviews

Should review topics of contemporary interest and importance, and ideally should address controversial issues by expressing both sides of the controversy. The review should be comprehensive and authoritative as reflected by a bibliography of the most significant and up to date literature on the topic. The review should emphasize the best evidence currently available. We especially invite collaborative efforts by authors representing different points of view.

Abstract ( 250 words) with the headings: Objective, Data Sources, Review Methods, Results, and Conclusion Key Words
Acknowledgment (grants and research support)

References Word count: 3000 words (abstract – conclusion)

Figures/Tables: No more than a total of 8 figures and tables, Multi-paneled figures will be counted as multiple figures, Tables with more than 6 columns will be counted as multiple tables.

Case Report

Unlike other types of reports, Case Reports do not follow the IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results And Discussion) format and are shorter than any other types of report.

Case Reports should include the following sections:

1. The Abstract: a short summary to give an overall idea of the content of the document. It should be limited to 100 words, and should include the clinical question or diagnostic problem, and list applicable keywords used for indexing the document into a database.

2. The Introduction: concise, should capture the interest of the reader; it should include background information, using the available literature, to highlight the purpose of the Case Report and to corroborate the authors’ claims.

3. The Case Description: contains the focus on the Case Report. Data should be presented in chronological order, with enough details for the reader to establish their own conclusions about the case validity. Data may include current medical condition of the subject(s), their clinical history and family’s history when applicable, physical examination findings, investigative results, including imaging and laboratory results, differential diagnosis, management, follow-up and final diagnosis.

4. The Discussion: comprises the summary of the key findings and the authors’ interpretations of them. Key findings should be compared with what already present in the literature to justify the uniqueness of the Case Report and highlight the new knowledge derived, together with its practical applicability. When performing the comparison, authors’ should briefly summarize the previous literature and show in what aspects their case differs from it and what are the new discoveries included in it.

5. The References: list of the literature references used throughout the Case Report. References must be relevant and should support the thesis and the findings presented in the manuscript. Authors’ may not cite more than 15 references per Case Report.

Tables, images, and graphs may be included where applicable to provide visual aids and enhance the case report’s flow and clarity.

Systematic Reviews

Present clinical topics with significant recent literature and data sources. The literature and data sources should be explored in a thorough and comprehensive manner, preferably with the assistance of a librarian or other professional trained in the proper search of the medical literature. Clearly defined inclusion and exclusion criteria for the selection of articles should be used and described in the manuscript. Methods for minimizing bias in the selection and evaluation of articles should also be employed. Evidence-Based Reviews include a systematic review of the literature and also make recommendations for different treatments or procedures, using the same format as an Evidence-Based Guideline: Strong Recommendation, Recommendation, Option, or No Recommendation. These recommendations should be based on a combination of the strength of the evidence, including the assessment of the internal and external validity of the study and the relative benefit and risk of the intervention. These systematic and evidence-based reviews should be focused and follow the standard format as delineated in the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) document. The PRISMA document can be found here.

In brief, Systematic Review and Evidence-Based Reviews should include the following: Description of the focused research question, using the PICOS (Participant, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome, and Study design) criteria Comparison, Outcome, and Study design) criteria Critical appraisal of prior reviews on the topic Explicit description of the electronic search strategy and databases used Report the results of the search, the studies screened, and the studies included Explicit description of selection criteria for inclusion in the final review State the primary outcome variable Report the statistical methods used for data analysis and synthesis Extract and report the key outcomes and findings from each study Synthesize the data into a summary analysis Discuss risks of bias across studies Summarize the results of the data synthesis and analysis Provide an overall interpretation of the results, in the context of the published literature.

Abstract (250 words) with the headings: Objective, Data Sources, Review

Conclusion References: Word count: 1100–1500 words ( introduction–conclusion)
References quantity: 5–10

Letter to the Editor

May contain a comment to an article, a review, or a clinic case of particular interest.
It should be at least 1500 characters long, and can include pictures and additional bibliography to support the content.

Images

Relevant images and other graphic elements (tables, graphs, charts, drawings) to studies, articles, scientific reviews, or clinic cases may be published on The Rhinologist.
Such graphic content must be in high definition (at least 300dpi) and each graphic element must be accompanied with a brief description of the content of the image and the techniques used to acquire it, where applicable.

Manuscript Preparation

When preparing your manuscript for submission, please note the following guidelines. Original scientific manuscripts and review articles that do not adhere to the following instructions will be returned to the corresponding author for technical revision before undergoing peer review. Title page must be submitted as part of the manuscript. This should contain: 1) article title ( 100 characters, including spaces); 2) names of authors, their degrees and affiliations (dept., institution, city, state, country); 3) institution where the work was done (indicate which author is in which department); 4) a short running title of ≤ 45 letters and spaces; 5) source of financial support or funding; 6) conflict of interest statement; 7) and a footnote indicating the author to whom correspondence, reprint requests, and proofs will be sent, with complete address (including e-mail address and postal codes) and telephone/fax numbers.

If the manuscript was presented at  a meeting, give society name, city, state, country, and exact date when the meeting was held.

Conflict of Interest: Any financial or personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) the authors’ actions.

Financial Disclosures: Any specific financial interests, relationship and affiliations relevant to the subject of the manuscript. These can include employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership, etc. Abbreviations: Do not use abbreviations in the title or abstract. Define abbreviations at first mention in text and in each table and figure.

Text: number all pages, beginning with the title page as#1.
Double-space the manuscript (including references, figure legends, and tables).
State all measurements in metric units, and if desired, add English units in parentheses.
Begin each table on a separate page.
Begin references on a separate page after acknoledgments.

References: the authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of their references.  Each reference should be identified in the text in numerical order and should be identified by superscript Arabic numerals. Please begin the reference list on a separate page after the acknowledgments. Do not use “Endnotes” or similar programs for entering references. When formatting references, provide all authors’ names when fewer than seven; when seven or more, list the first three and add et al.  Any articles that are not in English must be translated Examples of correct forms of references are:

 AA BB, CC DD. Parotid tumor size predicts proximity to the facial nerve. Laryngoscope 0000; 000:0000

Tables: data in tables should supplement, not duplicate, information provided in the text. Tables must be submitted in Excel or Word table format and not as images. Tables should contain at least 2 columns of data, and should not list qualitative information or single-column numeric data that can be easily described in the Results section. Put tables on separate pages and number them in order of their mention in the  text. Provide a brief title for each table, and define any abbreviations in table footnotes.  Figures: Figures must be uploaded separately, including the number of the figure in the description box (e.g., Figure 1). Multi-paneled figures will be counted as separate figures (eg, Figure 1A and Figure 1B = 2 Figures. Figures can be submitted as EPS, JPEG, and TIFF file types. Figures cannot be embedded in Microsoft programs as this decreases resolution size. Color illustrations online are free of charge. Authors will be charged for color illustrations in print. The Publisher will provide, upon request, an estimate of the cost of color artwork. Please note that some color figures submitted may be selected by the Editor to be in color for print. RGB and gray-scale images must be at least 300 dpi. Line art/bitmap images must be at least 1200 dis

Patient Privacy and Informed Consent: authors should review the ICMJE section on Ethical Considerations in the Conduct and Reporting of Research: Privacy and Confidentialityt. Patients have a right to privacy that should not be violated without informed consent. Information (eg, names, initials, photographs, etc.) that can identify a patient should not be submitted until written informed consent has been provided. Any photos of patients must include a black box over the eyes to prevent identification.

Figure Legends: a figure legend is required for each figure. If a figure has multiple panels (eg, left, right or A, B, C) please specify each panel in the legend.

 Figure legends should appear on a separate text page after the reference list. Please provide definitions for all abbreviations used in the figures, and provide description for all symbols.

Permissions: the author is responsible for obtaining written permission to reproduce previously published material, including figures and tables, from the copyright holder. Enclose all letters granting permission at the time the manuscript is submitted for publication. Any permissions fees that might be required by the copyright owner are the responsibility of the authors requesting use for the borrowed material. Photographs of recognizable persons must be accompanied by a signed release from the patient. For a photograph of a minor, signed parental permission is required.

Supporting Information: supporting information can be a useful way for an author to include important but ancillary information with the online version of an article. Examples of supporting information include appendices, additional tables, data sets, figures, movie files, audio clips, 3D structures, and other related nonessential multimedia files.
Supporting information should be cited within the article text and cover letter, and a descriptive legend should be included. It is published as supplied by the author, and a proof is not made available prior to publication; for these reasons, authors should provide any supporting information in the desired final format

Ethical Concerns

Authorship Criteria: The Rhinologist    insists that all authors are truly qualified to be listed as such according to the criteria established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. The following three criteria must be met to qualify for authorship:

  1. Conception and design of project or analysis of the manuscript data;
  2. Drafting or critically revising the content of the manuscript submitted for publication, and;
  3. Giving final approval of the version to be published. Others who have contributed to the work but are not qualified to be authors should be “acknowledged” at the end of the article. 4. Approved by the ethical commitee of the Italian rhinology academy  Financial Disclosure Information: In the title page of the manuscript, all authors must disclose all financial relationships for their manuscript and work. Any financial interests the authors may have in companies or other entities must be cited. These include grants, advisory boards, employment, consultancies, contracts, honoraria, royalties, expert testimony, partnerships, or stock ownership in medically-related fields. If the authors disclose no conflicts of interest, please write “none.”  Researchers working in countries that have different requirements for approval of research involving human subjects or animals must meet local legal requirements and generally accepted ethical principles such as those set out in the Nuremberg code, Belmont report, and the Declaration of Helsinki.

Manuscript Submission

Manuscripts should be submitted online at  The Rhinologist account (paper@therhinologist.com)

Submitting Revisions: If you have been invited to submit a revised manuscript.  Authors can use the track changes feature of the Microsoft Word program to create a marked copy. Authors also should submit all tables and figures in separate files for production purposes.

Author Corrections on Proofs: The corresponding author will be provided page proofs and asked to check for errors and editorial queries. Although the correction of editorial and typographical errors will be made without charge, the cost of excessive additional alterations may be charged to the author. Proofs must be checked carefully and corrections returned within 24 to 48 hours of receipt, as requested in the communication accompanying the page proofs. Publication of the article may be delayed if the proofs are not sent back in a timely manner.

Reprints. Authors can order reprints at reprints@therhinologist.com.
Reprint requests should be mail to the publisher with the corrected proofs. Reprints are normally shipped 4 to 6 weeks after publication of the issue in which the item appears. The cost of the reprints depends by the number of copy and the number of pages, ask to the secretariat for the final cost sending an email to reprints@therhinologist.com

Copyright/LicenseAgreement
If your paper is accepted, the author identified as the formal corresponding author for the paper will receive an email.

Editorial Coordinator: Questions/concerns on manuscript types, author guidelines, etc. can be directed to the Editorial Coordinator at editorialcoordinator@therhinologist.com

Editorial Prize

For the first year  the article will be published free of charge till the date of the next  IAR Congress.

Copyright Transfer module

Download the module inserted below and attach it to the email when sending your submission