Manuscript Preparation and Submission

Editorial Policy

For information about editorial policy, visit http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/pages/editorial-policy.htm

Word Processing

For word processing, use Microsoft Word. The font should be 12 pt. Times New Roman; the document should be double-spaced and left justified. Use 1 space rather than 2 spaces after a period.  See the Typeface section for additional information.

Parts of a Manuscript

Each manuscript should contain each of the following elements, in the following order.

Title Page

Give complete information about each author (i.e., full name, graduate degree(s), affiliation, and the name of the institution in which the work was done. Clearly identify the corresponding author and provide that author’s mailing address (include phone number, fax number, and email address). Include separate word counts for abstract and text.

Article Summary Line

For perspectives, synopses, policy reviews, and research studies, include a clear, brief 1-sentence summary of the article’s conclusions; the summary will appear on the print table of contents. This sentence should highlight the bottom-line public health implications of the article and should be pithy, readable, and designed to entice someone to read the full article.

Running Title

A running title that will appear on the top of each right-hand print page and along top of the online browser window. The running title should be no more than 50 characters long, including spaces. Some common abbreviations (E. coli) and acronyms (MRSA, MDR TB, XDR TB) are allowed in running titles, but less familiar terms should be written out within the character limit.

Keywords

Include appropriate keywords (no limit); use terms listed in the National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings index (www.ncbi.nlm.nig.gov/mesh). Do not use formatting (boldface or italics) in keywords (note that they are only used for indexing and are not visible to readers).

Title

The title should be brief, concise, and call attention to the main point of the article. With a few exceptions, abbreviations and acronyms must be written out in full in titles but numbers can be given as digits rather than spelled out. EID does not use subtitles in titles or titles that are sentences.

Authors

Give complete information about each author (i.e., full name, affiliation, and the name of the institution where the work was done). Provide, at minimum, first and last names of each author. Middle names or initials and academic degrees are optional, although academic degrees will not appear in the published article. (Note: use periods, but no spaces, between initials.)

Use the following format:

Dana C. Crawford, Shanta M. Zimmer, Craig A. Morin, Nancy E. Messonnier, Ruth Lynfield, Qian Yi, Cynthia Shephard, Michelle Wong, Mark J. Rieder, Robert J. Livingston, Deborah A. Nickerson, Cynthia G. Whitney, and Jairam Lingappa

If 2 or more authors contributed equally to an article, this contribution may be acknowledged with a footnote that states “These authors contributed equally to this article.” However, a biographical sketch will be printed for only the first author (unless the article has only 2 authors).

Affiliations

Authors may list multiple affiliations, but provide only the overall institutional affiliation for each, not departments or other subunits. Identify city, state or province (for USA, Canada, Australia only), and country.

Incorrect: National Immunization Program, Coordinating Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Correct: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Incorrect: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

Correct: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

Author’s full initials and last name will appear after their respective institutions.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA (J. Doe, A.-E. Smith); and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA (J. Doe, B. Jones)

Use heading of “Author affiliations:” (>1 affiliation) or “Author affiliation” (1 only). No possessive (i.e., not Authors’).

Drop redundant material after first mention, unless something changes after city.

Author affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Emory University, Atlanta

Author affiliations: University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA; EviMed Research Group, LLC, Goshen, Massachusetts, USA

Author affiliations: Columbia University, New York, New York, USA; The Consortium for Conservation Medicine, New York; University of California, Santa Cruz, California, USA; New York State Department of Health, Slingerlands, New York, USA

Author affiliations: Queensland Health, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; University of Queensland, Brisbane; Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand; OzFoodNet, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia; OzFoodNet, Wallsend, New South Wales, Australia; and Australian National University, Canberra

When all authors have 2 affiliations, and those affiliations are the same it is acceptable to format as:

Author affiliations:  Grady Memorial Hospital, Atlanta, Georgia, USA; and Emory University, Atlanta.

Universities with multiple campuses:

Write campus (city) location as city, so it appears only once.

Incorrect: University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA

Correct: University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA

Names of institutions (including geographic designations that are part of the name) need not be translated into English. However, the city, state or province, and country listed in the affiliation should be given as the common English preferred designation in the Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names.

Incorrect: Università degli Studi di Firenze, Firenze, Italia

Correct: Università degli Studi di Firenze, Florence, Italy

Institut Pasteur (Pasteur Institute in English) should list the city separately, not as part of the name.

Incorrect: Institut Pasteur de Morocco, Casablanca, Morocco

Correct: Institut Pasteur, Casablanca, Morocco

Countries: Abbreviate USA and UK within affiliations in all cases. Include the state, territory, or province only for the USA, Canada, and Australia. Do not list the country for cities in England (only UK); do specify Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland for cities in these countries.

List China as People’s Republic of China; abbreviate as PRC on subsequent mention. For Taiwan, it is up to the author’s discretion whether or not to use “Republic of China.”

On second mention within affiliations, abbreviate DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo)

List Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China, at first mention, then just Hong Kong at subsequent mention. Special Administrative Region is not the preferred usage, according to Getty.

Mention Singapore (city/country) only once.

According to Australia’s postal conventions, the suburb, not the city, is used in an address.

Organizations in author list:  If the author list on an article includes an organization and a membership list is given, follow this process:

1. Insert a superscript footnote number after the organization name.

2. Insert a footnote after the affiliations in this format: “Additional members of [group name] who contributed data are listed at the end of this article.” If no members are listed separately as authors, delete “additional”; “who contributed data” can also be deleted if appropriate, such as when all group members are listed.

3. Place the member list directly after the text of the article, formatted using the Acknowledgments style. If there is an Acknowledgments header, then this paragraph should go before the header (not under it).

4. Use the same wording as the footnote as an introduction before the list: “Additional members of [group name] who contributed data:”

5. If locations are given, list name first, then location in parentheses. That is, “S.N. O’Connor (United States),” not “United States: S.N. O’Connor.”

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Abstract

An abstract is a brief, comprehensive summary of the contents of the article; it allows readers to survey the contents of an article quickly, and like a title, it enables abstracting and information services to index and retrieve articles. An abstract should briefly summarize the research question and any relevant background information, methods, results, and conclusions. Avoid vague or promising phrases such as “…implications of these findings are discussed;” instead, state public health implications of the results.

Do not use structured abstracts (i.e., subheadings). Do not cite references in the abstract. Abstracts for perspectives, synopses, policy reviews, and research studies should not exceed 150 words.  Abstracts for dispatches should not exceed 50 words. Letters, book reviews, and conference summaries do not have abstracts.

Text

Keep formatting simple. Use 12-point Times New Roman font with ragged right margins (left justified). Double space everything, including the title page, abstract, references, tables, and figure legends. Indent paragraphs; leave no extra space between paragraphs. After a period, leave only 1 space before beginning the next sentence. Italicize (rather than underline) scientific names when needed.

Acknowledgments

Full names only, not titles (e.g., Doctor, Professor) and affiliations, are listed for persons acknowledged. Acknowledgments for materials supplied belong as a parenthetical citation in the text where materials are mentioned.

Disclaimers

A disclaimer is placed on the inside front cover of the published journal and used periodically throughout the publication. It states, “The opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the institutions with which the authors are affiliated.” Additional disclaimers are discouraged.

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Biographical Sketch

For all article types, excluding letters, media reviews, and conference summaries, include a short (2–3 sentences) biographical sketch of only the first author or of both authors if only 2 authors. Include current position and affiliations (city but not state and country if same as in author affiliation list) and primary research interests.

References

Follow Uniform Requirements style (ww.icmje.org/index.html). Do not use endnotes for references. Place reference numbers in parentheses (do not use superscript style), and italicize numbers. Number citations in order of appearance, including references in figures and tables. If a reference is used in a figure key or label or in a figure legend, it should be numbered in order with any reference numbers that have preceded the first figure citation in text. For example, if references 1–10 have been cited in text, and the figure contains a previously uncited reference, that reference should be numbered as 11 (and text reference citations renumbered accordingly).

Consult List of Journals Indexed in Index Medicus for accepted journal abbreviations; if a journal is not listed, spell out the journal title in full. List the first 6 authors followed by “et al.” For juniors and subsequent sequels, include the designation (with no punctuation) after the first initial: “von Hoffman J Jr” or “Snowden CM III.” When there are >6 individual authors and a working group, list the first 6 authors, followed by et al., then the group.

Doe, Smith, Jones, Lane, Carter, James, et al.; The XYZ Working Group.  

For organizations as author, spell out the full name of the organization (World Health Organization, not WHO) if it is the author, or just give the title with no author. Never use “Anonymous” or "No author given."

For publisher location, place US states or country names in parentheses.

Adelaide (Australia): Adelaide University

Ames (IA): Iowa University Press

Cite personal communications and unpublished data (including manuscripts in preparation or submitted for publication but not yet accepted) in parentheses in text:

(D.E. Berg, pers. comm.)

(D. Stantio, unpub. data)

Articles in press (accepted for publication but not yet published) should include publication name and current year (no comma).

Authors. Article name. Publication name. In press 2008.

The following cities should be used without the state or country name when listed in references, meeting, or publisher locations (e.g., New York: John Wiley & Sons).  Provide state or country name in text for manufacturer locations (e.g., Fisher Scientific, Pittsburgh, PA, USA)

Atlanta	Cincinnati	Madrid	Pittsburgh
Amsterdam	Cleveland	Mexico City	Prague
Baltimore	Copenhagen	Miami	Rome
Basel	Dallas	Milan	San Francisco
Beijing	Denver	Minneapolis	Seattle
Belgrade	Detroit	Montreal	St. Louis
Berlin	Dublin	Moscow	Stockholm
Bonn	Edinburgh	Munich	Tokyo
Boston	Frankfurt	Naples	Toronto
Brussels	Geneva	New Orleans	Turin
Budapest	Houston	New York	Uppsala
Buenos Aires	Kiev	Oslo	Vienna
Cairo	Leningrad	Oxford	Warsaw
Cambridge*	London	Paris	Washington
Chicago	Los Angeles	Philadelphia	Zurich
* Cambridge, Massachusetts, should be listed with the state.

Abstracts

Abstracts can be cited in the references. If the abstract has only a number, cite the name of the booklet (e.g., Program and Abstracts).

Galil K, Singleton R, Levine O, Fitzgerald M, Ajello G, Bulkow L, et al. High prevalence of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) carriage among Alaska Natives despite widespread use of Hib-conjugate vaccine. In: Abstracts of the 35th Infectious Diseases Society of America; San Francisco; 1997 Sep 13–16; Abstract 421. Alexandria (VA): Infectious Diseases Society of America; 1997.

Dissertations, Theses

Dissertations can be used as references; theses cannot. Cite theses in the text, giving all information that would normally be included in a reference. International variations in terminology occur; the primary distinction is whether or not the work is published.

Electronic Citations

If a URL is provided, it is not necessary to say “Available from.” The URL alone is sufficient.  Do not give a URL for articles that have a Medline link. Include the date cited for each URL listed in references. Use the URL for the specific page where information can be found, not to the main page of the website.

Wikipedia information should be cited in text (see www.wikipedia.org/wiki/....), not as a numbered reference.

Below are some examples of references that may not be listed in Uniform Requirements.

Electronic Journal Citations

Ben Amor Y, Nemser B, Sing A, Sankin A, Schluger N. Underreported threat of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in Africa. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2008 Sep [date cited]. http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/14/9/1345.htm

Note: If the citation references an e-published ahead of print article, do not update the reference.  The reference needs to reflect the source used at the time the reference was cited.   

Other Electronic Citations

World Health Organization. Outbreak encephalitis 2005: cases of Japanese encephalitis in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. 2005 Oct 21 [cited 2006 Jul 11]. http://w3.whosea.org/en/Section1226/Section2073.asp

ProMed Citations

Lipkin I.West Nile–like virus: PCR primers and protocols. ProMed. 1999 Oct 13. http://www.promedmail.org, archive no. 19991013.1826.

Foreign Language Citations

References published in a foreign language but translated into English should indicate the original language in brackets, after the article title.

Pablos-Mendez A, Lessnau K. Clinical mismanagement and other factors producing antituberculosis drug resistance [in Dutch]. Journal name;2000:159–76.

References that appear in a foreign language should be translated into English, if possible.

Address for Correspondence

Clearly identify the corresponding author and provide that author’s mailing address, including phone number, fax number, and email address.

(The phone and fax number will not be published.) Only 1 author may be designated as corresponding, and only 1 address may be published for that author (i.e., corresponding author may not list 2 email addresses).  Use American form of country names.

Mexico, not México
Peru, not Péru
Brazil, not Brasil

For CDC addresses, list CDC only (spelled out), not CIOs; provide mailstop; include NE after Clifton Road.

John Doe, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, Mailstop X55, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA

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Tables

Provide tables within the manuscript file, not as separate files. Use the MS Word table tool. Do not use any other program or tabs or spaces to align columns. If not formatted correctly, the tables will be returned to the author for proper formatting. Footnote any use of boldface. Tables should be no wider than 17 cm. Condense or divide larger tables. See section Formatting Tables and Figures for additional instructions. Place tables within manuscript after References.

Figures

Submit figures as separate files, in the native format when possible (e.g., Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint).  Photographs should be submitted as high-resolution (600 dpi) .jpeg or .tif files. Other files may be acceptable; contact fue7@cdc.gov for guidance. Figures should not be embedded in the manuscript file. Use color only as needed. Use Arial font for figure lettering. Figures, symbols, lettering, and numbering should be clear and large enough to remain legible when reduced to print size. Large figures may be made available online only. Place figure keys within the figure. Figure legends should be provided at the end of the manuscript file. See Formatting Tables and Figures for additional instructions. Submit multiple panels as individual files. Do not submit multipanel panels. Place figure captions in manuscript after tables.

Videos

Submit as AVI, MOV, MPG, MPEG, and WMV. Videos should not exceed 5 minutes and should include an audio description and complete captioning. If audio is not available, provide a description of the action in the video as a separate Word file. Published or copyrighted material (e.g., music) is discouraged and must be accompanied by written release. If video is part of a manuscript, files must be uploaded with manuscript submission. When uploading, choose the file “Video” file. Include a brief video legend in the manuscript file. Your video upload will not convert to PDF, but will be available during the peer-review process.

Online-only Materials

Tables, Figures

Tables and figures to appear online only should be numbered sequentially with tables and figures that will appear in print and are included in the manuscript maximum counts (e.g., no more than 2 tables and 2 figures total for a dispatch). Tables and figures that appear online only will be cited in text with a link to the online file. References within appendix tables or appendix figure legends are included in the manuscript maximum count (e.g., 15 for a dispatch) and should be numbered sequentially based on where the citations appear in text.

Technical Appendixes and Other Materials

For materials outside the scope of the article, authors may submit a Technical Appendix that will be presented online only. Technical Appendixes will be formatted but not edited; these materials are not included in the manuscript maximum word and reference counts. A link to the Technical Appendix will be provided in the text of the article where the materials are cited. Technical Appendixes that are surveys written in a language other than English may be printed in their original language.

Alternatively, readers may be referred to the corresponding author for supplemental materials, or authors may post supplemental materials on a separate website and provide a link to that site in the article.

Manuscript Submission

To submit a manuscript, assess Manuscript Central from the Emerging Infectious Diseases website Author Resource Center (http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/pages/author-resource-center.htm). Include a cover letter indicating the proposed category of the article (e.g, Research, Dispatch), verifying the word and reference counts and confirming that the final manuscript has been seen and approved by all authors. Complete provided Authors Checklist. Manuscripts (initial submissions as well as revisions) submitted by email will be returned.

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Additional Information:

Formatting Tables
Formatting Figures (Images)
Typeface