Human and Animal Rights
All studies must be conducted in accordance with an appropriate ethical framework. If there is any doubt that research has not been conducted in accordance with proper ethical standards, the Editors reserve the right to reject the manuscript and/or refer the matter to the authors’ institutional Ethics Committee for further review. In exceptional cases, if the Editor has serious concerns regarding the ethical conduct of a study, the manuscript may be rejected on ethical grounds even if approval from the relevant ethics committee has been obtained.
Any article involving human participants or research involving animals must include a statement confirming that the research was conducted in accordance with the relevant institutional and national ethical guidelines. Studies involving animals should be designed to avoid unnecessary pain, distress, or suffering. Authors must also ensure that all applicable regulations governing the use of animals in research are followed.
All clinical trials must be registered in an appropriate, publicly accessible trial registry.
Informed Consent
Informed Consent for Research Participation
Informed consent is a fundamental ethical requirement for research involving human participants. Before enrollment in a study, participants must be provided with adequate information about the purpose of the research, procedures involved, expected duration of participation, potential benefits, foreseeable risks or discomforts, and the handling of personal information and research data. This information should be provided in language understandable to the participant and with sufficient opportunity to ask questions and make an informed decision.
Participation must be voluntary and free from coercion, undue influence, or inappropriate pressure. Participants must be informed of their right to decline participation or withdraw from the study in accordance with the conditions explained during the consent process, without inappropriate disadvantage or impact on their legitimate access to care or other entitled services.
Research involving human participants must receive prior approval from an appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB), Research Ethics Committee (REC), or equivalent ethics body, in accordance with applicable institutional and regulatory requirements. The consent process must follow the approved research protocol, and appropriate records of consent must be maintained. Where required, written informed consent should be obtained before research-related procedures are undertaken.
Where informed consent is waived or not required, the waiver or exception must be appropriately justified and approved by the relevant ethics committee, where applicable. Where participants are unable to provide consent due to age, lack of decision-making capacity, or other legally recognized circumstances, consent should be obtained from a legally authorized representative, as applicable, and assent should be sought from the participant whenever reasonably possible.
For manuscripts involving human participants, authors must provide a statement identifying the relevant ethics committee or institutional review board and confirming whether informed consent was obtained. Where consent was not required or was formally waived, the manuscript should clearly state this and provide the relevant ethical justification.
Consent for Publication
Patients and research participants have the right to privacy, and the Journal is committed to protecting this right. Identifying information, including names, initials, hospital numbers, or other personal identifiers, should not be included in written descriptions, photographs, or pedigrees unless such information is essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent/guardian) has provided written informed consent for publication.
When informed consent for publication is required, the identifiable participant should be informed about the nature of the publication and the information being disclosed. Authors must ensure that participants understand that identifiable information may be published in print and online once the article is published. Written consent must be obtained and retained by the authors and/or the journal in accordance with applicable local regulations and legal requirements.
Irrelevant personal information must be omitted from the manuscript. If there is any uncertainty about whether anonymity can be preserved, informed consent for publication must be obtained. Measures such as masking parts of the face (e.g., covering the eyes in photographs) are not considered sufficient to guarantee anonymity. If identifying characteristics are altered to protect identity, authors must ensure that such changes do not distort the scientific meaning, and this must be clearly stated in the manuscript.
Where applicable, the published article must include a statement confirming that informed consent for publication was obtained from the participant(s).
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