The International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds

This Journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics

This Journal recommends that authors follow the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals formulated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

Please read the guidelines below then visit the Journal’s submission site https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijlew to upload your manuscript. Please note that manuscripts not conforming to these guidelines may be returned.

Sage Publishing disseminates high-quality research and engaged scholarship globally, and we are committed to diversity and inclusion in publishing. We encourage submissions from a diverse range of authors from across all countries and backgrounds.

Only manuscripts of sufficient quality that meet the aims and scope of International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds will be reviewed.

There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this Journal. Open Access options are available - see section 3.3 below.

As part of the submission process you will be required to warrant that you are submitting your original work, that you have the rights in the work, that you are submitting the work for first publication in the Journal and that it is not being considered for publication elsewhere and has not already been published elsewhere, and that you have obtained and can supply all necessary permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you.

1. What do we publish?
1.1 Aims & Scope
1.2 Article types
1.3 Writing your paper

2. Editorial policies
2.1 Peer review policy
2.2 Authorship
2.3 Acknowledgements
2.4 Funding
2.5 Declaration of conflicting interests
2.6 Research ethics and patient consent
2.7 Clinical trials
2.8 Reporting guidelines
2.9 Data

3. Publishing polices
3.1 Publication ethics
3.2 Contributor’s publishing agreement
3.3 Open access and author archiving

4. Preparing your manuscript
4.1 Formatting
4.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics
4.3 Supplementary material
4.4 Reference style
4.4 English language editing services

5. Submitting your manuscript
5.1 ORCID
5.2 Information required for completing your submission
5.3 Permissions

6. On acceptance and publication
6.1 Sage Production
6.2 Online First publication
6.3 Access to your published article
6.4 Promoting your article

7. Further information

 

1. What do we publish?

1.1 Aims & Scope
Before submitting your manuscript to International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds, please ensure you have read the Aims & Scope on the journal's homepage.

1.2 Article types
We encourage you to present manuscripts with:

• A strong opening or background section that states the aim of the work
• Study design for example prospective, randomised/non randomised, quasi or controlled, double or single anonymize/open
• Setting for example single/multicentre
• Reference to approved Ethics or Institutional Review Board permission (see Research Ethics section below for details)
• Materials and Methods
• Data Analysis
• Results
• Discussion
• References
• Acknowledgements

Guidance on submitting figures and tables are presented under Instruction to Authors.

Case Reports: A Case Report is an uncontrolled original observation which has value within the clinical setting. Authors intending to submit a case report should discuss the dilemma posed by the situation (by the clinical problem) and the solution offered, and discusses the learning outcome in the background of current evidence and knowledge.

Case Series: Case series are n expansion of a single case report – it is a set of uncontrolled observations with a common theme.

Letters to the Editor: Letters are welcome. Letters are not edited and may be accompanied by a small figure/graph seeking to illustrate a point. Letters will not be subject to the referee process and will present authors’ views; not necessarily in concord with those of the Editors/Journal Management.

Reviews: IJLEW publishes systematic, invited, perspective reviews. Reviews are subject to the same process to ensure the highest quality is maintained. Reviews should be a critical synthesis of the current evidence, paradigm shifting and 4000 words long covering diagnosis, management, basic wound science, and health economics of wounds.

Seminar reviews: Reviews on contentious themes relevant to wound management are sought. These features will be of the order of 4,000 words, well-illustrated and will serve to update experts on changing perspectives. These features will serve as tutorials.

Invited Editorial Articles: These articles are usually 1,000 words in length, using the same referencing format as for other papers in the IJLEW.

Registered Reports, Pre-Data or Post-Data

There are two types of Registered Reports: 

• Registered Reports – Pre-Data, i.e., before any data have been gathered   
• Registered Reports – Post-Data, i.e., before already existing data have been examined and analyzed.   

These submissions are reviewed in two stages. In Stage 1, a study proposal is considered for publication prior to data collection and/or analysis. Stage 1 submissions should include a complete Introduction, Methods, and Proposed Analyses. High-quality proposals will be accepted in principle before data collection and/or data analysis commences. Once the study is completed, the author will finish the article including Results and Discussion sections (Stage 2). Publication of the Stage 2 submissions is guaranteed as long as the approved Stage 1 protocol is followed, and the conclusions are appropriate. Full details can be found here. 

Replications  

IJLEW welcomes replication studies important to relevant disciplines. These replications may be “successful” or “unsuccessful,” but they need to be well done and contain a discussion of the type of replications (e.g., conceptual, direct, etc.), the constraints on generality, and how this specific replication adds to the literature. Replication papers will always be empirical (with basic and/or applied questions, and with quantitative and/or qualitative data) and can be submitted as a Registered Report.

Manuscript Preparation:

Style - Papers should be highly readable while clearly presenting messages. The page size for this journal is 8.5 x 11 inches.

Title Page - Authors are encouraged to choose an informative though catchy title. Please also supply a condensed title no more than five words for the running head. Include academic titles and full contact details (addresses, telephone and fax numbers of at least the corresponding author + e-mail) of all authors. Authors are requested to 4 key words for indexing purposes.

Authorship: Once submitted the named list of authors in a manuscript may not be changed. An exceptional circumstance may arise in the case of a manuscript undergoing "major revision". An example is when "major revision" includes new and / or different statistical analysis to acknowledge which an additional colleague's contribution may need to be recognised. In such a case, the Contact Author should write to the Editor-in-Chief explaining the circumstances presenting clearly the difference made by the additional colleague.

Conflict of interest - A conflict of interest or a partial conflict of interest must be declared at the time of submission (see additional information below).

Abstract - There should be an abstract serving to introduce readers to the aim and message implicit in the paper. The abstract is merely a word document without any sections. Compose your abstract as if it were a submission to a conference where the acceptance of your paper depends on the abstract.

Give as much relevant data to make it outstanding: for example, ”The results showed a statistically significant difference (p=0.001, Student T test) “ or “ these analytical data strongly suggest the need for a paradigm shift in our management of....”

Avoid buzz words/phrases and made up words which will lengthen the Abstract but diminish its impact on readers.

IJLEW does not have INTRODUCTION OR BACKGROUND as Section Headers.

Figures and Tables- Papers should include line diagrams and high quality black & white reproductions. Authors are encouraged to discuss the use of colour reproductions. Also, please be informed that fees for any figures printed in colour will be $800 for the first colour and $200 for each additional colour. It is free of charge for the Online Issue only. Any further queries dealing with the colour figures should be directed to the production editor at Sage at the following email address: christy.batheja@sagepub.in

The Keywords Page facilitates indexing and retrieval services so please choose your identifiers with great care.

References - References should be in AMA style (see example below):

References in the manuscript should be superscripted, written in numerals with no brackets or parenthesis in the order these appear in the Reference Section.

A correctly formatted submission reduces editorial office time in processing the manuscript. Read your completed manuscript with great care editing typo and other errors.

Typical entry for a journal

Smith J, Canton EM. Weight based administration of dalterparin in obese patients. Am J Health-Syst Pharam. 2003;60(7);683-687

If the journal does not have a volume or issue number, use the issue date.

Typical entry for a Letter of Editorial (place the article type in brackets [ ])

Whitcomb ME. The April issue: required reading [editorial]. Acad Med. 2007;82(4):319-320.

Typical entry for a Book

Davis NM. Medical Abbreviations: 26,000 Conveniences at the expense of Communications and Safety. 12^thed. Huntingdon Valley, PA: Neil M Davis Associates; 2005:173.

References to websites - These are permitted as valid references but must include the date accessed.

Personal Communications – These should be entered into the main text as (Author followed by statement) and should not appear in the reference section.

Acknowledgements - Grant support for part of or the whole work presented in the review should be acknowledged on the last page following references.

Photographs and line drawings should be clear with as much detail to help the reader.

Associated Costs for Authors
The charge for publishing color figures is $800 for the first figure and $200 for each additional figure

1.3 Writing your paper
The Sage Author Gateway has some general advice and on how to get published, plus links to further resources.

1.3.1 Make your article discoverable
When writing up your paper, think about how you can make it discoverable. The title, keywords and abstract are key to ensuring readers find your article through search engines such as Google. For information and guidance on how best to title your article, write your abstract and select your keywords, have a look at this page on the Gateway: How to Help Readers Find Your Article Online

2. Editorial policies

2.1 Peer review policy
IJL operates a conventional double-anonymize reviewing policy in which the reviewer’s name is always concealed from the submitting author.

As part of the submission process you will be asked to provide the names of 2 peers who could be called upon to review your manuscript. Recommended reviewers should be experts in their fields and should be able to provide an objective assessment of the manuscript. Please be aware of any conflicts of interest when recommending reviewers. Examples of conflicts of interest include (but are not limited to) the below:

• The reviewer should have no prior knowledge of your submission
• The reviewer should not have recently collaborated with any of the authors
• Reviewer nominees from the same institution as any of the authors are not permitted

You will also be asked to nominate peers who you do not wish to review your manuscript (opposed reviewers).

Please note that the Editors are not obliged to invite/reject any recommended/opposed reviewers to assess your manuscript.

Publons
International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds is committed to delivering high quality, fast peer-review for your paper, and as such has partnered with Publons. Publons is a third party service that seeks to track, verify and give credit for peer review. Reviewers for Angiology can opt in to Publons in order to claim their reviews or have them automatically verified and added to their reviewer profile. Reviewers claiming credit for their review will be associated with the relevant journal, but the article name, reviewer’s decision and the content of their review is not published on the site. For more information visit the Publons website.

The Editor or members of the Editorial Board may occasionally submit their own manuscripts for possible publication in the journal. In these cases, the peer review process will be managed by alternative members of the Board and the submitting Editor/Board member will have no involvement in the decision-making process.

2.2 Authorship
Papers should only be submitted for consideration once consent is given by all contributing authors. Those submitting papers should carefully check that all those whose work contributed to the paper are acknowledged as contributing authors.
The list of authors should include all those who can legitimately claim authorship. This is all those who:

(i) Made a substantial contribution to the concept or design of the work; or acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data,
(ii) Drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content,
(iii) Approved the version to be published,
(iv) Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content.

Authors should meet the conditions of all of the points above. When a large, multicentre group has conducted the work, the group should identify the individuals who accept direct responsibility for the manuscript. These individuals should fully meet the criteria for authorship.

Acquisition of funding, collection of data, or general supervision of the research group alone does not constitute authorship, although all contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in the Acknowledgments section. Please refer to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) authorship guidelines for more information on authorship.

Please note that AI chatbots, for example ChatGPT, should not be listed as authors. For more information see the policy on Use of ChatGPT and generative AI tools.

***Please ensure all authorship information is correct prior to submission.***

2.3 Acknowledgements
All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an Acknowledgements section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help, or a department chair who provided only general support.

2.3.1 Third party submissions
Where an individual who is not listed as an author submits a manuscript on behalf of the author(s), a statement must be included in the Acknowledgements section of the manuscript and in the accompanying cover letter. The statements must:

• Disclose this type of editorial assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of input
• Identify any entities that paid for this assistance
• Confirm that the listed authors have authorized the submission of their manuscript via third party and approved any statements or declarations, e.g. conflicting interests, funding, etc.

Where appropriate, Sage reserves the right to deny consideration to manuscripts submitted by a third party rather than by the authors themselves.

2.3.2 Writing assistance
Individuals who provided writing assistance, e.g. from a specialist communications company, do not qualify as authors and so should be included in the Acknowledgements section. Authors must disclose any writing assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of input – and identify the entity that paid for this assistance”).

It is not necessary to disclose use of language polishing services.

Any acknowledgements should appear first at the end of your article prior to your Declaration of Conflicting Interests (if applicable), any notes and your References.

2.4 Funding 
International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds requires all authors to acknowledge their funding in a consistent fashion under a separate heading. Please visit the Funding Acknowledgements page on the Sage Journal Author Gateway to confirm the format of the acknowledgment text in the event of funding, or state that: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

2.5 Declaration of conflicting interests
It is the policy of International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds to require a declaration of conflicting interests from all authors enabling a statement to be carried within the paginated pages of all published articles.
Please ensure that a ‘Declaration of Conflicting Interests’ statement is included at the end of your manuscript, after any acknowledgements and prior to the references. If no conflict exists, please state that ‘The Author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest’.

For guidance on conflict of interest statements, please see the ICMJE recommendations here

2.6 Research ethics and patient consent
Medical research involving human subjects must be conducted according to the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki

Submitted manuscripts should conform to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals, and all papers reporting animal and/or human studies must state in the methods section that the relevant Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board provided (or waived) approval. Please ensure that you have provided the full name and institution of the review committee, in addition to the approval number.

For research articles, authors are also required to state in the methods section whether participants provided informed consent and whether the consent was written or verbal.

Information on informed consent to report individual cases or case series should be included in the manuscript text. A statement is required regarding whether written informed consent for patient information and images to be published was provided by the patient(s) or a legally authorized representative.

Please also refer to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Protection of Research Participants

All research involving animals submitted for publication must be approved by an ethics committee with oversight of the facility in which the studies were conducted. The Journal has adopted the ARRIVE guidelines.

2.7 Clinical trials
International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds conforms to the ICMJE requirement that clinical trials are registered in a WHO-approved public trials registry at or before the time of first patient enrolment as a condition of consideration for publication. The trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract.

Angiology endorses the ICMJE requirement that clinical trials are registered in a WHO-approved public trials registry at or before the time of first patient enrolment. However, consistent with the AllTrials campaign, retrospectively registered trials will be considered if the justification for late registration is acceptable. The trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract.

2.8 Reporting guidelines
The relevant EQUATOR Network reporting guidelines should be followed depending on the type of study. For example, all randomized controlled trials submitted for publication should include a completed CONSORT flow chart as a cited figure and the completed CONSORT checklist should be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses should include the completed PRISMA flow chart as a cited figure and the completed PRISMA checklist should be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. The EQUATOR wizard can help you identify the appropriate guideline.

Other resources can be found at NLM’s Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives

2.9 Data
Sage acknowledges the importance of research data availability as an integral part of the research and verification process for academic journal articles.

International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds requests all authors submitting any primary data used in their research articles [“alongside their article submissions” or “if the articles are accepted”] to be published in the online version of the journal, or provide detailed information in their articles on how the data can be obtained. This information should include links to third-party data repositories or detailed contact information for third-party data sources. Data available only on an author-maintained website will need to be loaded onto either the journal’s platform or a third-party platform to ensure continuing accessibility. Examples of data types include but are not limited to statistical data files, replication code, text files, audio files, images, videos, appendices, and additional charts and graphs necessary to understand the original research. [The editor(s) may consider limited embargoes on proprietary data.] The editor(s) [can/will] also grant exceptions for data that cannot legally or ethically be released. All data submitted should comply with Institutional or Ethical Review Board requirements and applicable government regulations. For further information, please contact the editorial office at rm1@soton.ac.uk.

3. Publishing Policies

3.1 Publication ethics
Sage is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view the Publication Ethics page on the Sage Author Gateway

3.1.1 Plagiarism
International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds and Sage take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of published articles. Equally, we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. Submitted articles may be checked with duplication-checking software. Where an article, for example, is found to have plagiarised other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with insufficient acknowledgement, or where the authorship of the article is contested, we reserve the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum (correction); retracting the article; taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of the author's institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; or taking appropriate legal action.

3.1.2 Prior publication
If material has been previously published it is not generally acceptable for publication in a Sage journal. However, there are certain circumstances where previously published material can be considered for publication. Please refer to the guidance on the Sage Author Gateway or if in doubt, contact the Editor at the address given below.

3.2 Contributor’s publishing agreement
Before publication, Sage requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. Sage’s Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is an exclusive licence agreement which means that the author retains copyright in the work but grants Sage the sole and exclusive right and licence to publish for the full legal term of copyright. Exceptions may exist where an assignment of copyright is required or preferred by a proprietor other than Sage. In this case copyright in the work will be assigned from the author to the society. For more information please visit the Sage Author Gateway

3.3 Open access and author archiving 
International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds offers optional open access publishing via the Sage Choice programme and Open Access agreements, where authors can publish open access either discounted or free of charge depending on the agreement with Sage. Find out if your institution is participating by visiting Open Access Agreements at Sage. For more information on Open Access publishing options at Sage please visit Sage Open Access. For information on funding body compliance, and depositing your article in repositories, please visit Sage’s Author Archiving and Re-Use Guidelines and Publishing Policies.

4. Preparing your manuscript for submission

4.1 Formatting
The preferred format for your manuscript is Word. LaTeX files are also accepted. Word and (La)Tex templates are available on the Manuscript Submission Guidelines page of our Author Gateway.

4.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics
For guidance on the preparation of illustrations, pictures and graphs in electronic format, please visit Sage’s Manuscript Submission Guidelines

Figures supplied in colour will appear in colour online regardless of whether or not these illustrations are reproduced in colour in the printed version. For specifically requested colour reproduction in print, you will receive information regarding the costs from Sage after receipt of your accepted article.

4.3 Supplementary material
This journal is able to host additional materials online (e.g. datasets, podcasts, videos, images etc) alongside the full-text of the article. For more information please refer to our guidelines on submitting supplementary files

4.4 Reference style
Please visit the official website of the U.S. National Library of Medicine http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html to see how references should be listed.

4.5 English language editing services
Authors seeking assistance with English language editing, translation, or figure and manuscript formatting to fit the journal’s specifications should consider using Sage Language Services. Visit Sage Language Services on our Journal Author Gateway for further information.

5. Submitting your manuscript
International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds is hosted on Sage Track, a web based online submission and peer review system powered by ScholarOne™ Manuscripts. Visit https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijlew to login and submit your article online.

IMPORTANT: Please check whether you already have an account in the system before trying to create a new one. If you have reviewed or authored for the journal in the past year it is likely that you will have had an account created. For further guidance on submitting your manuscript online please visit ScholarOne Help.

5.1 ORCID
As part of our commitment to ensuring an ethical, transparent and fair peer review process Sage has become a supporting member of ORCID, the Open Researcher and Contributor ID. ORCID provides a unique and persistent digital identifier that distinguishes researchers from every other researcher, even those who share the same name, and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between researchers and their professional activities, ensuring that their work is recognized.

The collection of ORCID iDs from corresponding authors is now part of the submission process of this journal. If you already have an ORCID iD you will be asked to associate that to your submission during the online submission process. We also strongly encourage all co-authors to link their ORCID ID to their accounts in our online peer review platforms. It takes seconds to do: click the link when prompted, sign into your ORCID account and our systems are automatically updated. Your ORCID iD will become part of your accepted publication’s metadata, making your work attributable to you and only you. Your ORCID iD is published with your article so that fellow researchers reading your work can link to your ORCID profile and from there link to your other publications.

If you do not already have an ORCID iD please follow this link to create one or visit our ORCID homepage to learn more.

5.2 Information required for completing your submission
You will be asked to provide contact details and academic affiliations for all co-authors via the submission system and identify who is to be the corresponding author. These details must match what appears on your manuscript. At this stage please ensure you have included all the required statements and declarations and uploaded any additional supplementary files (including reporting guidelines where relevant).

5.3 Permissions
Please also ensure that you have obtained any necessary permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please see the Copyright and Permissions page on the Sage Author Gateway

6. On acceptance and publication

6.1 Sage Production
Your Sage Production Editor will keep you informed as to your article’s progress throughout the production process. Proofs will be sent by PDF to the corresponding author and should be returned promptly. Authors are reminded to check their proofs carefully to confirm that all author information, including names, affiliations, sequence and contact details are correct, and that Funding and Conflict of Interest statements, if any, are accurate. 

6.2 Online First publication
Online First allows final articles (completed and approved articles awaiting assignment to a future issue) to be published online prior to their inclusion in a journal issue, which significantly reduces the lead time between submission and publication. Visit the Sage Journals help page for more details, including how to cite Online First articles.

6.3 Access to your published article
Sage provides authors with online access to their final article.

6.4 Promoting your article
Publication is not the end of the process! You can help disseminate your paper and ensure it is as widely read and cited as possible. The Sage Author Gateway has numerous resources to help you promote your work. Visit the Promote Your Article page on the Gateway for tips and advice.

7. Further information
Any correspondence, queries or additional requests for information on the manuscript submission process should be sent to the International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds editorial office as follows:

Editor-in-Chief: Ragjopal Mani, DSc, FACA, FIPEM
Email: rm1@soton.ac.uk