Journal of the Nigerian Optometric Association
Journal / Journal of the Nigerian Optometric Association / Submissions

 

The journal will consider the following categories of manuscripts for publication:

1. Original research reports describing new experimental findings, or analyses (e.g. post hoc, subgroup, meta-analysis where an overall statistic is derived).
2. Review articles. The following types of reviews:
   1. General reviews that provide a synthesis of an area that fits within the aims and scope of the journal;
   2. Perspective reviews - review articles that address important new areas of general interest and afford the author the opportunity to present a forward-looking perspective on the topic;
   3. Drug reviews - review articles focusing on the available evidence for the use of a particular drug or combination therapy
3. Case reports/case series – outlining an interesting case/cases, and including a full review of the pertinent literature and a section on implications for clinical care
4. Short communications/letter to Editor
5. Editorials

Submission of manuscripts

• Submission : Submit manuscripts online on noajournal.org or as an email attachment to the Editor-in-chief editor@noajournal.org; benyita2001@yahoo.com and Assistant Editor assistanteditor@noajournal.org; godwin.ovenseri-ogbomo@uniben.edu
• Visit noajournal.org or https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jnoa for submission guidelines and authors general information

The Publishing Process/ Peer-review policy

A manuscript will be reviewed for possible publication with the understanding that it is being submitted to Journal of the Nigerian Optometric Association alone at that point in time and has not been published anywhere, simultaneously submitted, or already accepted for publication elsewhere. The journal expects that authors would designate one of them as to corresponding author to correspond with the Journal for all matters related to the manuscript. All manuscripts received are duly acknowledged. On submission, editors review all submitted manuscripts initially for suitability for formal review as well as run a plagiarism test. Manuscripts with insufficient originality, serious scientific or technical flaws, or lack of a significant message are rejected before proceeding for formal peer-review.

Review Process

Manuscripts that are found suitable for publication in JNOA are sent to two or more expert reviewers. The journal follows a double-blind review process, wherein the reviewers and authors are unaware of each other’s identity. Every manuscript is also assigned to a member of the editorial team, who based on the comments from the reviewers takes a final decision on the manuscript. The comments and suggestions (acceptance/ rejection/ amendments in manuscript) received from reviewers are conveyed to the corresponding author. If required, the author is requested to provide a point by point response to reviewers’ comments and submit a revised version of the manuscript. This process is repeated till reviewers and editors are satisfied with the manuscript. Page proofs are sent to the corresponding author after final acceptance. The corresponding author is expected to return the corrected proofs within three days. It may not be possible to incorporate corrections received after that period.

Preparation of manuscript

Manuscript – the manuscript must be original to the author(s) and should be sent to the editor-in-chief in electronic copy by email. Each manuscript should not exceed 16 pages/8000 words except for review articles. It should be legible with compact notations used, and each symbol properly aligned to distinguish between superscripts and subscripts

Format of paper

The paper should include:

1. A cover letter accompanying the manuscript, indicating the significance of the study and also certifying that the article has not been previously published elsewhere. Authors full names, email address and affiliations, including corresponding author’s telephone number will be required. The Journal will publish manuscripts written in English, using A4 paper size with 1.25 inches margin on all sides. Preferred font size is 12 with double spacing using Times New Romans
2. Title of paper should not exceed 25 words
3. Abstract (Not more than 250 words, structured and should provide brief narrative of the purpose, methods, results and conclusion of the study. For purpose of indexing, 3 to 6 keywords will be adequate).
4. Introduction: The introduction should briefly review the current state of the research field and cite key publications. Highlight the background of the study, importance, a clear statement of the problem, aim of the work and principal conclusions.
5. Materials and methods: Materials and Methods should be described with sufficient details to allow others to replicate and build on published results.
6. Results: This section should provide a concise and precise description of the study findings and interpretation in a logical sequence
7. Discussion: Authors should discuss the results critically and how they can be interpreted in perspective of previous studies. The findings and their implications should be discussed in the broadest context possible. Future research directions, strengths and limitations of study should be highlighted.
8. Conclusion: Indicate the main deductions or interpretations of study and how they will be valuable to society.
9. Acknowledgement: (where necessary, not more than 100 words)
10. Funding: indicate if research received external funding
11. Conflicts of Interest: Declare conflicts of interest
12. References - The JNOA uses the Vancouver referencing style. Use consecutive numbers in superscript before punctuation mark. [eg. Studies^1-3, have shown that…]  Reference listing should be done in order in which they appear in the text. [eg. Nwokedi O, Ekpenyong BN, Musa NR, Ovenseri-Ogbomo GO^. Refractive Errors in Children with Down syndrome in Lagos State, Nigeria. Journal of the Nigerian Optometric Association. 2018;20(2):4-8]

1.2 Article Types

Five Types of Manuscripts may be Submitted.

Original Articles:

These include randomized controlled trials, intervention studies, studies of screening and diagnostic test, outcome studies, cost effectiveness analyses, case-control series, and surveys with high response rate. The text of original articles should be divided into sections with the headings Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusion, References, Tables and Figure legends.

Abstract: It should be structured and divided into sections with the headings “Purpose, Methods, Results, Conclusion” and it should be provided in maximum 250 words.

Keywords: Three to six keywords should be included.

Review Articles:

It is expected that these articles would be written by individuals who have done substantial work on the subject or are considered experts in the field. A short summary of the work done by the contributor(s) in the field of review should accompany the manuscript.

The word count is variable, depending on content and type of submission (Max 4000 words; References, minimum 40; Tables/Figures, 3-6 max). The manuscript should have an unstructured abstract (maximum 250 words) representing an accurate summary of the article. The section titles would depend upon the topic reviewed. Authors submitting review article should include a section describing the methods used for locating, selecting, extracting, and synthesizing data. These methods should also be summarized in the abstract.

The journal expects the contributors to give post-publication updates on the subject of review. The update should be brief, covering the advances in the field after the publication of the article and should be sent as a letter to editor, as and when major development occurs in the field.

Systematic reviews:  Abstracts must be structured using the headings: Purpose, Objective, Methods, Results, Conclusion. Main text must be structured using the headings: Purpose, Methods, Results, Conclusion. The Methods section must clearly describe the search strategy (keywords, inclusion/exclusion criteria, search engines used, etc.)

Brief Reports (Main text, 2000 words max; Abstract, 150 words max; References, 20 max, Tables/Figures, 2 max) Abstracts for Brief Reports must be structured using the headings: Purpose, Methods, Results, Conclusion. Main text must use the structural headings: Introduction Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusion. Brief Reports must provide conclusive findings: preliminary observations or incomplete findings cannot be considered for publication.

Case Reports/Case Series:

New, interesting and rare cases can be reported. They should be unique, describing a great diagnostic or therapeutic challenge and providing a learning point for the readers. Cases with clinical significance or implications will be given priority. These communications could be of up to 1200 words (excluding abstract and references) and should have the following headings: Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Case Report, Discussion, Clinical significance/implications, References (up to 15 references), Tables and Legends in that order.

Abstract should be structured and divided into sections with the headings “Purpose, Case Report, and Conclusion” and it should be provided in maximum 150 words. Authored by not more than four authors.

Short communication/Letter to Editor:

These should be short and decisive observations. They should preferably be related to articles previously published in the Journal or views expressed in the journal. They should not be preliminary observations that need a later paper for validation. The letter could have up to 500 words and 5 references. It could be generally authored by not more than four authors.

Editorials/Opinions:

These should cover a single topic of contemporary issue and authors should be written invited only. Main text, 2000 words; No abstract; References, 15 max; Tables/Figures, 2 max)

In all cases, authors should ensure compliance with the highest standards of research ethics. A statement indicating such compliance should be included in the methodology section of each submission. It is the authors responsibility to ensure that ethical approval is obtained from relevant Institutional Review Boards and the Journal could request a copy of such IRB approval.

• . Tables

1. Tables should be self-explanatory and should not duplicate textual material. Each table should be referenced in the text.
2. Tables with more than 10 columns and 25 rows are not acceptable.
3. Number tables, in Arabic numerals, consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text and supply a brief title for each.
4. Table number and Title should be place on top of the Table [Table 1. Socio-demographic characteristics of respondents.]
5. Submit each table on a separate page
6. Place explanatory matter in footnotes, not in the heading.
7. Spell out all abbreviations that are used in each table in footnotes (for instance: IOP, intraocular pressure).
8. Obtain permission for all fully borrowed, adapted, and modified tables and provide a credit line in the footnote.
9. For footnotes use the following symbols, in this sequence: *, †, ‡, §, ||,¶ , **, ††, ‡‡

• . Figures

1. Figures should be numbered consecutively according to the order in which they have been first cited in the text.
2. Labels, numbers, and symbols should be clear and of uniform size. The lettering for figures should be large enough to be legible after reduction to fit the width of a printed column.
3. Symbols, arrows, or letters used in photomicrographs should contrast with the background and should be marked neatly with transfer type or by tissue overlay and not by pen.
4. Titles and detailed explanations belong in the legends for illustrations not on the illustrations themselves.
5. When graphs, scatter-grams or histograms are submitted the numerical data on which they are based should also be supplied.
6. The photographs and figures should be trimmed to remove all the unwanted areas.
7. If photographs of individuals are used, their pictures must be accompanied by written permission to use the photograph.
8. If a figure has been published elsewhere, acknowledge the original source and submit written permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the material. A credit line should appear in the legend for such figures.
9. Figure legends: Provide figure legends in maximum 600 characters. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the illustrations, identify and explain each one in the legend. Explain the internal scale (magnification) and identify the method of staining in photomicrographs.
10. Final figures for print production: Send sharp, glossy, un-mounted, color photographic prints, with height of 4 inches and width of 6 inches at the time of submitting the revised manuscript. Print outs of digital photographs are not acceptable. If digital images are the only source of images, ensure that the image has minimum resolution of 300 dpi or 1800 x 1600 pixels in TIFF format. Each figure should have a label pasted (avoid use of liquid gum for pasting) below, on its back indicating the number of the figure, the running title, top of the figure and the legends of the figure [ Figure1.Age distribution of respondents] Do not write the contributor/s' name/s.
11. The Journal reserves the right to crop, rotate, reduce, or enlarge the photographs to an acceptable size. 
12. Submit each figure on a separate page

• 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:

1. Made a substantial contribution to the concept or design of the work; or acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data.
2. Drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content.
3. Approved the version to be published.
4. Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content.
5. Authors should meet the conditions of all of the points above. Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content. When a large, multicenter 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.

6. The role of each author should be clearly specified when submitting the manuscript.

1.6.      Acknowledgements

All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship as specified above should be listed in the Acknowledgement section of the manuscript.

• Declaration of Conflict of Interest

It is the policy of JNOA 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   Download the ICMJE COI form