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Author Guidelines

Tanzania Dental Journal is an organ of the Tanzania Dental Association and is published biannually. The journal will consider for publication articles on original research work, reviews, short communications, letters, and case reports on all aspects of oral health. Manuscripts on clinical and basic research relevant to the East African region and Africa will receive special priority. Submitted manuscripts must be written in English and must not be under consideration for publication elsewhere.

Manuscript submission

Manuscripts, including tables and figures of high-quality illustrations, should be sent in 3 hard copies. The submission must be accompanied by a written statement, signed by the corresponding author on behalf of all authors stating that they agree to the submission, and the material submitted is not under consideration for publication in another journal. Initial receipt of all manuscripts will be acknowledged and, at the conclusion of the review process, authors will be notified by the Editor of the outcome of their manuscripts. The journal aims at having a review process of manuscripts completed within six weeks of receipt.

Hard copy submission

Manuscripts should be submitted in three copies, double spaced, on ISO A4 size paper. An electronic copy as a Word document should be submitted as final draft after completion of revising the manuscript either on a floppy disk or electronically in rich text format (rtf) as an attachment using the following address;, tanzdentj@yahoo.com.

All rights in manuscripts shall be transferred to the TANZANIA DENTAL JOURNAL upon submission. On acceptance of a manuscript, authors will be asked to sign a formal transfer of copyright, before publication. It is the author’s responsibility to obtain permission to reproduce illustrations, tables, etc. from other publications.

Manuscripts components

The components of a manuscript should be: Title page, Abstract, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgement, References, Tables, Figures and Figure legends in that order.

Title page

The title page should contain the following information in the order given: (1) Full title of manuscript; (2) Author’s surnames followed by initials; (3) Author(s) institutional affiliations including city and country; (4) A running title not exceeding 60 characters including letters and spaces (5) The name and address of the author responsible for correspondence about the manuscript.

Abstract page

A separate abstract page should contain the following; (1) Title of manuscript; (2) Title of Journal, abbreviated as Tanz Dent J; (3) The word abstract followed by a summary of the complete manuscript not exceeding 250 words. The abstract should be arranged in structured fashion (to include; Aim, Design, Materials/Study subjects and Methods, Results and Conclusion). Below the abstract provide 3-10 key words.

Introduction

Under this section authors should present the background and state the questions they want to answer. Authors should include only the most relevant references to the question being reported.

Materials/Study subjects and Methods

Give details of the research was carried out including description of the study population/materials, its size and selection. Describe research instruments such as questionnaires, surgical laboratory equipments, materials and procedures in sufficient detail. Where laboratory animals are used, give the genus, species, race, strain, breed or line name.

Ethics

It is assumed that the author(s) will have considered the ethics of his/her (their) research with respects to the guidelines of Helsinki declaration (1975) and subsequent amendments thereof.

Results

Present results in logical sequence in tables and illustrations. In the text, explain, emphasize or summarize the most important observations.

Discussion

Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study without repeating the data given in the results section. Relate the observations to other relevant studies. Discuss possible implications of the findings.

Acknowledgment

Acknowledge only institutions or persons who made substantial contributions to the study.

References

Number references consecutively in the order in which they appear in the text. Limit the references to ≤ 30. Identify references in text, tables and legends by Arabic numerals (in parentheses). Use the style of the example below, which is based on the format used by the US National Library in Index Medicus. Avoid using abstracts as references. “Unpublished observations” and “Personal communications” may be inserted (in parentheses) in text, but should not appear in the reference list. Examples of correct forms of references are given below:

Journals

Standard journal article
List all authors when six or less, with seven or more, list only first three and add et al. example;
1. Mumghamba EGS, Fabian FM. Tooth loss among habitual chewing-stick and plastic toothbrush users in the adult population of Mtwara, rural Tanzania. Int J Dental Hygiene 2005; 3:64-9.
2. Kahabuka FK, Willemsen W., van’t Hof M., et al. Oro-dental injuries and their management among children and adolescents in Tanzania. East Afr. Med. J. 1999, 76:30-41.

Unpublished manuscript which has been accepted for publication Simon ENM, Merkx MAW, Shubi FM, Kalyanyama BM, Stoelinga PJW. Reconstruction of the mandible after ablative surgery for the treatment of aggressive, benign odontogenic tumours in Tanzania: a preliminary study. International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (Accepted for publication 2006).

Books and other monographs personal author(s) CM Pine. Community Oral Health. First edition. The Bath Press, Bath, Great Britain 2002.

Chapter in book

Lembariti BS. Identifying what is required to improve periodontal health in African nations. In Pack ARC and Newman HN “Periodontal Needs of Developing Nations”. Science Reviews Limited, Middlesex UK. 1996; Chapter 5; pg 41-49.

Dissertation/Thesis

Joyce Rose Masalu. Centre for International Health, Department of Odontology-Community Dentistry, University of Bergen- Norway. Oral health behaviour and oral quality of life among students in Tanzania Intervention opportunities. (2002) PhD Thesis.

Organization as author

WHO Collaborating Centre for Oral Precancerous Lesions: Definition of leukoplakia and related lesions: an aid to studies on oral precancer. Oral Surg. 1978; 46:518-39.

Tables

Tables should only be used to clarify important points. Double documentation is not accepted. Each table should be typed on a separate sheet, and should have clear descriptive titles. Tables should be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals.

Illustrations

All graphs, drawings and photographs are considered figures and should be numbered in sequence in roman numerals. Each figure should have a self explanatory legend and all legends should be typed on a separate sheet and numbered correspondingly. The inclusion of colour illustrations is at the discretion of the editor. The author may pay for the cost of additional colour illustrations. The publisher will quote the current rates. One set of original colour prints and two copies should be submitted.

Abbreviations, symbols and nomenclature

Only abbreviations and symbols that are generally accepted should be used. Unfamiliar ones must be defined when first used.

Page proofs

The corresponding author will receive a copy of page proof by e-mail or hard copy. At this stage, authors should limit alterations to factual and typographical errors. Authors will be charged for major revisions, and publications of their work will be delayed.

Review articles

Review articles on recent development in dentistry or oral health related sciences will be considered for publication. They must be exhaustive and should include appropriate reference to the literature whish should not be more than 20. Review articles will go through the usual peer-review process before a final decision regarding publication is made.

Case reports

Case reports on clinical problems will be accepted for publication if they contain new or controversial observations. Such reports should not exceed 4 printed pages in length including references and no more than three tables or figures.

Short communication

Short communications of 1-2 (3-6 double spaced) pages will be acceptable and need not follow the usual division into Materials and Methods etc. but should have an abstract. Short communications will not be subjected to peer reviewing.

Letters to the Editor

Letters to the editor will be accepted as stimulating comment on current issues, especially relating to material recently published in the journal. Letters will not undergo editorial revision except for language correction.

All manuscripts and related correspondence to:
Assistant Editor
Tanzania Dental Journal
P.O. Box 65008
Dar es Salaam
Tanzania

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

1. The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
2. The submission file is in Microsoft Word, RTF, or WordPerfect document file format.
3. Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
4. The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
5. The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
6. If submitting to a peer-reviewed section of the journal, the instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.

Copyright Notice

Copyright for articles published in this journal is retained by the journal.

Privacy Statement

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