Aims and Scope: 

The Iranian Journal of Dermatology is the official journal of the Iranian Society of Dermatology (http://www.irsod.net), aiming to be a publication of international repute that serves as a medium for dissemination and exchange of scientific knowledge in the field of dermatology. Our objective is to publish peer-reviewed articles of global interest in the form of original articles, review articles, case reports, quizzes, and letters, covering all aspects of dermatology including dermatopathology, procedural dermatology, epidemiologic studies, and clinical dermatology.

Editorial Policy

Our editorial policy is consistent with the principles of editorial independence presented by the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME).

 

Editorial Independence:

Although the “Iranian Journal of Dermatology” is sponsored financially by the Iranian Society of Dermatology, it benefits from editorial freedom. The editors evaluate and accept articles based only on significance, originality, validity, and adherence to the aims and scope of the Journal.

 

The language of the Journal was changed from “Persian” to “English” in 2008.

 

Authorship:

According to the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals released by the ICMJE, an “Author” is generally considered to be someone who simultaneously meets the following conditions:

1-Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND

2-Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND

3-Final approval of the version to be published; AND

4-Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

 

Human & Animal Rights Statement:

Research involving human subjects, human material, or human data must have been performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and must have been approved by an independent local, regional, or national review body (e.g., ethics committee, institutional review board).

When reporting experiments on animals, authors should indicate whether institutional and national standards for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed. Further guidance on animal research ethics is available from the International Association of Veterinary Editors’ Consensus Author Guidelines on Animal Ethics and Welfare.

Manuscripts describing any experimental research on animals must include a statement of approval from the ethics committee of the institute where the work was carried out, confirming that the study was carried out in accordance with the legal requirements of the relevant local or national authority. Before articles describing animal studies are accepted for publication in the Iranian Journal of Dermatology, the authors must convince the editors that the work meets reasonable ethical standards. The care and use of laboratory animals must conform to acceptable international animal

welfare guidelines. For reports on such studies, authors should refer to the ARRIVE checklist.

 

 Informed Consent:

All patients and participants in a research project should be thoroughly informed about the aims of the study and any possible side effects of the drugs and interventions. Written informed consent from the participants or their legal guardians is necessary for any such studies. The Journal reserves the right to request the related documents. Articles that require informed consent should contain related statements in the “Methods” section.

 

Data Sharing Policy:

This Journal recommends that all submitted manuscripts that report the results of clinical trials adhere to the Data Sharing Statements for Clinical Trials: A Requirement of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/publishing-and-editorial-issues/clinical-trial-registration.html#two)

 

Plagiarism:

Authors are not allowed to utilize verbatim text of previously published papers or manuscripts submitted elsewhere. All submitted manuscripts will be checked for possible similarity in any part of the work by the iThenticate plagiarism checker. The COPE guidelines will be followed in cases where plagiarism is detected. Based on the amount of plagiarism detected, the manuscript may be returned to the authors if not rejected. The authors will be asked to add the appropriate citations, rephrase the copied segments, or include direct quotations with references.

 

Retraction Policy:

The Journal uses the COPE flowchart for retracting a published article to determine whether a published article should be retracted.


Peer review process: All manuscripts are considered to be confidential. Through a double-blind review process, the manuscripts are peer-reviewed by at least two anonymous reviewers selected by the Editorial Board. Their comments will be passed to the authors. The authors’ response and reviewers’ comments will then be evaluated by the Editor-in-Chief and a final reviewer from the Editorial Board. The final decisions will be made after discussions during regular editorial board sessions. Based on the comments and the Journal’s standards, the Editor-in-Chief will decide which articles should be published. The corresponding author is notified as soon as possible of the editor’s decision to accept, reject, or request modifications. If the manuscript is completely acceptable according to the criteria set forth in these instructions, it will be scheduled for publication in the next available issue.

It should be noted that articles submitted by the staff and editors of the IJD will also be subjected to the same peer review process, with the involved authors playing no role in reviewing and decision-making.

 

Requirements for Different Types of Articles

Original articles: Should contain a structured abstract, 3-5 keywords, introduction, materials or patients and methods, results, discussion, conclusion, acknowledgments (if applicable), references, and a maximum of four tables and four figures. The length should not exceed 3000-3500 words excluding the references, abstract, figures, and tables. A total of 15-40 references should be provided for original articles.

Clinical trials: The format is similar to original articles. However, the CONSORT flow diagram should be added as a figure. RCTs should be registered at any RCT Registry approved by the WHO, and their registration number should be mentioned on the title page. RCTs done in Iran must be registered at www.irct.ir.

Brief reports: Should contain a non-structured abstract, 3-5 keywords, introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, conclusion, acknowledgments (if applicable), and references, with a maximum of two tables and figures. The word count should not exceed 2000 words; 10-15 references should be provided.

Case reports: Should contain a non-structured abstract, 3-5 keywords, introduction, case presentation, discussion, conclusion, acknowledgments (if applicable), and references, with a maximum of one table and three figures. Relevant figures should accompany case reports to document findings, and 5-10 references should be provided. Informed consent should be obtained from the patient to report their case. The Journal reserves the right to request the original version of the signed informed consent form.

Review articles:

-Narrative reviews: Should contain at least 60 references. The abstract should be non-structured. The word count should not exceed 4500 words. Narrative reviews should critically assess the current knowledge of the field.

-Systematic reviews: Systematic reviews of RCTs or observational studies may be accepted by the Journal. The study protocol should adhere to the PRISMA or MOOSE guidelines for systematic reviews of RCTs or observational studies, respectively. Up to 60 references can be provided. Abstracts should be structured.

Letters to the Editor: Letters should be less than 1500 words. Letters discussing articles published in the Journal should be submitted within four months of the publication of the main article. Letters will undergo peer review and will be edited for clarity. Up to 10 references should be provided.

Photo clinics: Figures that contain a significant medical point can also be accepted. Photo clinics should contain one or two high-quality figures and a description of the figures no more than 500 words. Up to 5 references can be stated.

Photo Quizzes: A Photo Quiz presents an interesting dermatological disease to the reader. It should include a title, clinical presentation (including diagnosis and microscopic findings), discussion, and references. Figures should be original images, and references must be presented in the discussion. A Photo Quiz should be less than 1500 words. Up to 10 references can be stated.



Submission:  Manuscript submission to the Iranian Journal of Dermatology is only possible through the Journal’s URL: http://www.iranjd.ir. The manuscript must be accompanied by a covering letter addressed to the Editor-in-Chief, including the title and corresponding author’s name and declaring that the manuscript has not been published or submitted elsewhere. In case the manuscript was earlier submitted to some other journals and was rejected, the authors must provide full information for proper analysis. The manuscript should be typed as a Microsoft Word document in double space on A-4 size pages set up with clear margins on both sides. Tables and illustrations should be typed and drawn at the end of the manuscript after the references. Do not submit tables as photographs. All text documents should be uploaded in Microsoft Word format. Figures should be of high quality, submitted in JPEG or GIF format.

The manuscript should include the following sections: Title page; Abstract; Introduction; Materials & Methods; Results; Discussion; Acknowledgements, and References.

Title page: The complete title of the manuscript; the name of all authors with their highest qualifications; the department or institution to which they are affiliated; the address for correspondence with telephone numbers, e-mail, and fax number.

Abstract: All original articles must accompany a structured abstract of up to 250 words. It should be structured as Background, Methods, Results, and Conclusion, followed by 3 to 5 keywords. Keywords will assist indexers in cross-indexing the article as they are published with the abstract. Use terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html). Authors need to be careful that the abstract accurately reflects the article's content.

Introduction: This should summarize the purpose and the rationale for the study. It should neither review the subject extensively nor contain data or conclusions of the study.

Materials & Methods: This should include the exact method of observation or experimentation. If an apparatus is used, the manufacturer’s name and address should be given in parenthesis. If the method is established, provide the reference, but if the method is new, provide enough information so that another author can replicate it. If a drug is used, its generic name, dose, and route of administration must be given. The age, sex, and mean age ± standard deviation must be provided for patients. Statistical methods must be mentioned; also specify any general computer program and information systems used.

Results: It must be presented in the form of text, tables, and illustrations. The contents of the tables should not be repeated in the text. Instead, a reference to the table number may be given. Long articles may need sub-headings within some sections (especially the Results and Discussion parts) to clarify their contents.

Discussion: This should emphasize the present findings and the variations or similarities with other work done in the field by other researchers. Detailed data should not be repeated in the discussion. Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that follow. Declare whether the hypothesis mentioned in the article is concluded true, false, or no conclusions can be derived.

Acknowledgments: All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be covered in the acknowledgments section. It should include persons who provided technical help, writing assistance, or general support. Financial and material support should also be acknowledged.

Tables:
 Should be submitted in limited numbers with the caption placed above. Do not submit tables as photographs. Place explanatory matters in footnotes, not in the heading.

Figures: Should be in limited numbers, with high-quality artwork, mounted on separate pages. The captions should be placed below. The same data should not be simultaneously presented in tables, fig‌ures, and text.

References: All manuscripts should be accompanied by relevant references. The authors should ensure that relevant locally published studies are referenced by completing a proper literature search. It may not be possible for the editor and reviewers to check the accuracy of all citations. To minimize such errors, the authors should verify references against the original documents. The References section should provide the following information in the models that follow:

  • Article:Tallab TM, Bahamdam KA, Mirdad S, et al. Cutaneous leishmaniasis: Schedules for intralesional treatment with sodium stibogluconate. Int J Dermatol 1996;35:594-7.
  • Chapter: Bigby M. The hierarchy of evidence. In: Williams HC, Bigby M, Diepgen T, et al (Eds). Evidence-based dermatology. Oxford: BMJ Publishing Group; 2003. 44-8.
  • Book:Norman IJ, Redfern SJ (Eds). Mental health care for elderly people. New York: Churchill Livingstone;1996.



Abbreviations and symbols: Use only standard abbreviations. Avoid using them in the title and abstract. The full term for which an abbreviation stands should precede its first use in the text unless it is a stan‌dard unit of measurement.

The corresponding author:
  Will be supplied with three free printed issues.

Ethical guidelines: Ethical considerations must be addressed in the Materials and Methods section. 1) Please state that informed consent was obtained from all adult participants and from minors' parents or legal guardians. Include the name of the appropriate institutional review board that approved the project. 2) Indicate in the text that the maintenance and care of experimental animals complied with National Institutes of Health guidelines for the humane use of laboratory animals, or those of your institute or agency.


Conflicts of interest:  Authors must acknowledge and declare any sources of funding and potential conflicting interests, such as receiving funds or fees by, or holding stocks and shares in, an organization that may profit or lose through publication of your paper. Declaring a competing interest will not lead to automatic rejection of the paper, but we would like to be made aware of it.

Each author must fill the uniform disclosure form available through the following link and must upload it at the time of submission: (http://www.icmje.org/disclosureof-interest/)

Complaints and appeals

 

The Iranian Journal of Dermatology responds promptly to complaints and ensures that dissatisfied clients can continue to address their complaints by emailing the Editor-in-Chief. We follow COPE’s guidelines and flowcharts for handling complaints against the Journal and its staff, editorial board, or publisher.

 

Article charges:  There are no charges for submission or publication in the Journal.

Open Access Policy:

The Journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

 

All articles published by the Iranian Journal of Dermatology are made immediately available worldwide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License policy.

 

Content Licensing Policy

Iranian Journal of Dermatology articles are published under the Creative Commons license (CC-BY-NC).


This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Copyright Policy

 Authors who publish with the Journal agree to the following terms:

  1. I/we certify that I/we have participated sufficiently in the intellectual content, conception and design of this work or the analysis and interpretation of the data (when applicable), as well as the writing of the manuscript, to take public responsibility for it and have agreed to have my/our name listed as a contributor. I/we believe the manuscript represents valid work. Neither this manuscript nor one with substantially similar content under my/our authorship has been published or is being considered for publication elsewhere, except as described in the covering letter. I/we certify that all the data collected during the study is presented in this manuscript and no data from the study has been or will be published separately. I/we attest that, if requested by the editors, I/we will provide the data/information or will cooperate fully in obtaining and providing the data/information on which the manuscript is based, for examination by the editors or their assignees. I/we also certify that we have taken all necessary permissions from our institution and/or department for conducting and publishing the present work.
  2. Financial interests, direct or indirect, that exist or may be perceived to exist for individual contributors in connection with the content of this paper have been disclosed in the cover letter. Sources of outside support of the project are named in the cover letter.
  3. I/we hereby, transfer(s), assign(s), or otherwise convey(s) all copyright ownership, including any and all rights incidental thereto, exclusively to the Journal, in the event that such work is published by the Journal. The Journal shall own the work, including 1) copyright; 2) the right to grant permission to republish the article in whole or in part, with or without fee; 3) the right to produce preprints or reprints and translate into languages other than English for sale or free distribution; and 4) the right to republish the work in a collection of articles in any other mechanical or electronic format.
  4. We give the rights to the corresponding author to make necessary changes as per the request of the journal, do the rest of the correspondence on our behalf and he/she will act as the guarantor for the manuscript on our behalf.
  5. All persons who have made substantial contributions to the work reported in the manuscript, but who are not contributors, are named in the Acknowledgment and have given me/us their written permission to be named. If I/we do not include an Acknowledgment that means I/we have not received substantial contributions from non-contributors and no contributor has been omitted.

 

Withdrawal request: If authors withdraw manuscripts on unethical grounds, the Journal may blacklist the author and co-authors for future publications.

Disposal of material: Once published, all copies of the manuscript, correspondence, and artwork will be held for six months before disposal.

The Final Checklist

  1. The authors must ensure that before submitting the manuscript for publication, they have taken care of the following: Title page should contain the title, name of the author/co-authors, their qualifications, designation & institutions they are affiliated with, mailing address for future correspondence, e-mail address, and phone and fax number.
  2. Abstract in the structured format (up to 250 words).
  3. References are mentioned as stated in the Instruction to Authors section.
  4. Tables are presented correctly in terms of their headings, numbers, data, and footnotes. Do not repeat information in both the text and tables.
  5. Photographs/illustrations are provided in high quality along with their captions.
  6. Letter of Undertaking signed by all authors.
  7. Disclosure regarding source of funding and conflict of interest, if any, besides approval of the study from the respective Ethics Committee/Institution Review Board.
  8. Covering letter
  9. Main manuscript document
  10. Please prepare your manuscripts according to journal templates: Template IJD QuizTemplate IJD Case reportTemplate IJD Original Article(Review/Short/Letter)

 

Farhad Handjani, MD
Editor-in-Chief

Iranian Journal of Dermatology
Unit 1, No 14, Sharifi St, North Gandi Ave, Tehran, Iran
Post Box: 14155-6157

Tel: +98 - 21 - 88202914-15

+98 936 852 7664 (Direct line to journal)

Fax: +98 - 21 - 88784721

Website: www.iranjd.ir

E-mail: iranjdermatol@gmail.com