Level 5 Semester 9 Evidence-Based Medicine Notes (2023-2024) PDF

Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) Lecture 4: Principles of scientific writing 6.7.3 Identify elements of research paper and referencing Overall content Introduction A scientific research paper is a w...

Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) Lecture 4: Principles of scientific writing 6.7.3 Identify elements of research paper and referencing Overall content Introduction A scientific research paper is a written and published report describing the results of scientific research. A task of writing a research paper can be scary; even with innovative research unless the paper is correctly written and at best, publication will be delayed or at worse, never published. A preparatory phase for writing is encouraged by selection of research problem research question, review of previous research and defining null & alternative hypothesis. Figure (1): Research components 1|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) General recommendations for writing Style By all means, you should write in your own personal style, but keep in mind that scientific writing has a completely different purpose from literary writing: Try to be much more precise and concise writing. a sentence should express one complete thought a sentence must make sense and be complete a sentence must contain a subject-verb-object punctuation in a sentence contributes to the meaning intended  Use strong verbs with active voice rather than passive voice  Persuade the reader of the relative value of the sentence’s contents.  Avoid sentences that are too lengthy as they are more likely to cause confusion.  Check that your sentences are complete at all times.  Check the grammar and spelling mistakes (Cleaning up). I- Title Title is the key part of the article which should be designed to advertise the paper and engage the reader’s attention at first sight. It describes the paper’s content clearly and precisely including the keywords. It should be specific, brief, clear, simple, precise and catchy. The title generally should not exceed 150 characters or 12–16 words. Ideally, the title should be written after one has completed writing the main article. 2|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) It includes information that will help in the electronic retrieval of the article. Avoid abbreviations/numerical parameters in the title: as a rule, abbreviations are not used in the title, but if for some reason commonly used abbreviations are used in the title, they should be defined in the abstract. The following format can be used as a guide for writing a title: Research question + research design + population + geographic area of study (what, how, with whom, where). There is no full stop at the end of the title. - For example, “Parental occupational and environmental risk factors for childhood bone cancer in Mansoura oncology center: a case control study” (18 words, 112 characters with spaces). Types of titles 1- Declarative Titles: These types are the most appropriate for research articles; it declare the main findings, revealed the conclusion stated in the paper and convey the most information. For example, “Food fortification decreases the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia in rural India” 2- Descriptive Titles: These types are commonly used describing the subject of the research without revealing the conclusions. It includes the relevant information of the research hypothesis which is 3|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) studied, e.g., participant, intervention, control, and outcome; PICO. A descriptive title has certain advantages: Reader will get a snapshot information about the contents of the article.It contains important “keywords,” which increases the probability of the article being discovered by the search engines. Unlike a declarative title, the conclusions are also not revealed, and it will help to sustain a reader’s curiosity. For example, “Effect of food fortification on the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia in rural India” Interrogative title poses the subject of research as a question. They are more appropriate for literature reviews. 3. Interrogative Titles For example, “Does food fortification decrease the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia in rural India?” Running title The running title can include abbreviations even if the main title cannot. if the main title itself is brief, it can serve as a running head as well. Authors Author names and order of authorship: Full and accurate names of all the authors. Author affiliations: Each author’s highest academic designation, department, and institution. 4|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba  Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) The corresponding author: He/She must be highlighted with his e-mail, fax, mailing address, and telephone no. Only the corresponding author has the right to withdraw, correct, or make changes in the manuscript also, the corresponding author is the one responsible for: Submission & preparation of the manuscript to journal website Respond to editorial comments Respond to reviewers' comments Submit the clean final version after reviewing Abstract The origin of the word “abstract” is from the Latin word “abstractum” which refers to condensation of a long written work. It is a well-developed single paragraph which is approximately 250 words in length”. Furthermore, it is single-spaced single spaced. Abstract outlines all the parts of the paper briefly. Although the abstract is placed in the beginning of the research paper immediately after research title, the abstract is the last thing a researcher writes. Components of abstract: introduction/background –aim- methods-results- conclusion Types of abstract based on content Descriptive These abstracts describe the purpose and scope of the paper but do not mention about the findings. Typically, it is short ranging up to 75–100 words and often used in papers in the field such as social science and humanities. 5|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba  Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) Informative: These abstracts, providing an overview of the work, emphasize on the important findings and conclusions. It is commonly used for scientific abstracts with usual word limit of 250– 300. It can be roughly estimated as one-tenth the length of the original manuscript Types of abstract Based on writing format Unstructured Structured Abstracts Abstracts In these types of abstracts, The layout of these abstracts there are no pre-labeled has distinct and labeled sections in the abstract. sections thus enabling better All the details required in the comprehension. abstract are included like a Background-aim-methods- structured abstract. results-conclusion This is more commonly used Significant improvement in for case reports rather than the quality of information original articles. provided. Keywords :These are the words which are often used by readers in the search engines to retrieve the abstracts. They are allowed in number according to the journal guideline. II. Introduction/background Orientates your reader to the development of your argument Identifies the gap in knowledge or understanding Indicates how the manuscript fills the gap, or responds to the researchers 'posed main question Gives a brief overview of what is in manuscript 6|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) Offers intellectual stimulation to your reader (rational of study). The introduction is the most frequently read part of a research paper next to the title and abstract so avoid to be excessively lengthy. Typically, introduction begins with the big picture and narrow down to the research question; it clearly states: The problem and its significance with background that explains the problem and what people have done before in brief. The reasons for conducting the research (Justification and Aims of the study). III Subjects & methods 1. Written meticulously and includes all necessary details. 2. Following the correct methodology will help avoid unnecessary conflicts regarding the validity of the results. 3. Use past tense in methods section. 4. The methods section can be presented either in unstructured or a structured format which helps in expressing the details of the methodology in a simple and easily comparable way. 5. Clear methods section should incorporate the following points:  Study locality/setting/environment and Study duration.  Study design.  Participants/subjects used in the study with inclusion and exclusion criteria.  Sample size and sampling technique. 7|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR)  Materials used in the study and how the materials were prepared (full description of study tool).  Ethical issues including the confidentiality, informed written consent specially for clinical trials (study registration) and research ethics committee approval.  Budget : Self-funded. Or Company- funded. Or Government-funded.  Data management (last paragraph in methods). IV.Results  Present your data in tabular or graphical forms( Tables Figures: graphs, charts, drawings Written text.)  Objectively present your findings in a consecutive and clear manner  Explain your findings intext results for each table or graph  Include answers to your research question.  Do not duplicate the data in both figures and tables. Revise table and figure requirements from previous lectures of medical statistics 8|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) V. Discussion  This section can start small introduction to restate the rationale of the study with subsequent sentences focus on whether the research question is answered by the results.  The researchers should interpret their results and express their opinions also should discuss whether their results support or contrast the findings from other similar studies with an explanation for this contrast.  The researchers should obviously outline the knowledge gap that their research fills and explain how their results fill this gap.  It is important to emphasize the strength and limitations of your study and inform the readers about the suggestions for modifications in the future research. How to write discussion in active steps? Step 1. State the relationship between the hypothesis and the results. Step 2. Give a detailed explanation of the relationship you have found between the hypothesis and the results. The support or non-support of the hypothesis by the results naturally raises the question of why. Whatever the relationship between the hypothesis and the results, you must explain the scientific basis for it Step 3. Describe how your results compare with the results of related scientific experiments and explain what that comparison reveals. Step 4. Consider other issues that may be pertinent to the Discussion Step 5. Compose the Discussion using the elements you've created. 9|Page Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR) VI. Conclusion  This is the last paragraph of the discussion whereas in most of the journals, this is included in the discussion section while a few journals require a separate section for conclusion.  Again, state the strongest, most convincing data of your argument in support or rejection of the hypothesis first, followed by progressive weaker arguments.  State the relevance of the experiment to the field of research and where new directions of research might lead from this experiment.  This paragraph provides a “take home message” to the readers and shouldn’t extend beyond what is directly supported by your results Acknowledgments Whom to acknowledge?  Direct technical help; e.g., supply of animal subjects, equipment setup, statistics/data manipulation, analytical techniques.  Indirect assistance; e.g., topical and intellectual discussions about the research which can lead to generation of new ideas.  Affiliated institutions.  Funding bodies, Grant numbers and who received the funding if not the author; e.g., a supervisor. References  Any information not from your research and not ‘common knowledge’ should be recognized by a citation (intext reference and list of references). 10 | P a g e Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba  Level 5 Semester 9 "Evidence based medicine" (2023-2024) (EBMR)  Authors must check journal guidelines for reference style before preparing the references list.  Avoid duplication of references  Select most of the references from the last five years (according to journal guidelines). Reference styles include APA, MLA, Harvard and ,Vancouver ect. Include information in the following order: author (the person or organization responsible for the site) year (date created or last updated) name of sponsor of site (if available) accessed day month year (the date you viewed the site) Example: Hardcastle, T. C., Finlayson, M., van Heerden, M., Johnson, B., Samuel, C., & Muckart, D. J. (2013). The prehospital burden of disease due to trauma in KwaZulu-Natal: the need for Afrocentric trauma systems. World journal of surgery, 37(7), 1513-1525. URL or Internet address (between pointed brackets). example: Title. http://www. who. int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/en/Last accessed ……Last updated ….. References: 1. Mph, M. S. H. B., Md, S. C. R., Mph, M. W. B. S., Mph, M. D. G. G., & Mph, M. T. N. B. (2013). Designing Clinical Research (Fourth ed.). LWW. 2. A guide to Academic writing skills. Nature research academies. Springer nature 2021 Best of Luck 11 | P a g e Ass Prof Eman O Khashaba