The publication ethics
The publication ethics and publication malpractice statement 
based on COPE’s Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors
The decision to publish and the duties of the editorial office
The managing director, the editor in chief and the other members of the editorial board of the journal
are responsible for the decision to publish articles submitted for publication. The editors are bound by
the provisions of the law in force regarding libel, copyright infringement and plagiarism. The editorial
board has support from reviewers, who are selected among the members of the scientific advisory
board or other reviewers, in making this decisions, according to a double-blind peer review procedure.
The members of the editorial board guarantee that all intellectual work submitted for publication will be
discussed from a strictly scientific point of view, no matter the race, sex, sexual orientation, religion,
ethnic origin, citizenship, political or academic stance of the authors. The editorial board may give
information about the manuscript content only to the author, reviewers, potential reviewers, publisher
or other editorial advisers. In case of unpublished materials this should not be used by the members of
the editorial board in their benefit without the written consent of the author. If the editor finds or
receives signaling of a significant problem regarding errors or inaccuracies, conflict of interest or
plagiarism in an article published, it shall promptly inform the author and the publisher and take the
necessary steps to clarify the matter and, if necessary, withdraw the article or publish a retraction or an
errata corrige.
Duties of reviewers
Reviewers assist the editorial board in making editorial decisions and through the editorial
communications with the author may also assist the author in improving the paper. Any selected
referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its prompt
review will be impossible should notify the editor and excuse himself from the review process. Any
manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents and must not be shown to
or discussed with others except those authorized by the editor. Reviews should be conducted
objectively. Referees should express their views clearly and with supporting arguments. It is also their
role to indicate the sources or bibliography that would be relevant for the article under scrutiny. Any
kind of similarity between the manuscript and other published paper, must be immediately brought in to
notice to the editorial board. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept
confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which
they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or
connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.
Duties of authors
The authors must guarantee that their works are original and if they use the work or the words of
others that there is no fabrication, that credit is given and the other authors are mentioned explicitly.
Authors should also cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the
reported work.
Authors of reports of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed as
well as an objective discussion of its significance. Underlying data should be represented accurately in
the paper. A paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work.
Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.
Manuscripts submitted to the journal must not have been published as copyrighted material in other
publications. The manuscripts under review by the journal should not be submitted at the same time to
other journals. By submitting a manuscript, the author or authors agree that, once accepted, their work
will be published under a creative commons license. The authors remain the sole owners of the
publishing rights.
The literary paternity of a manuscript is limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the
conception, design, execution or interpretation of the study. All those who have made significant
contributions to the manuscript must be listed as co-authors. When there are others who have
participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project, they should be acknowledged or
listed as contributors.
The corresponding author should guarantee that all of its co-authors are included on the paper, that
they have seen and approved the final version and that they have agreed on its submission for
publication. Authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of
interest that may influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial
support for the project should be indicated. When an author discover a significant error or inaccuracy in
the published manuscript, it is his duty to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate
with them in order to correct the manuscript. The exposure of clinical material should be done in a way
that makes it impossible to identify the patient. If there is even the slightest doubt that the absolute
anonymity of the patient mentioned in the paper is not … achieved it is necessary to obtain the
informed consent. In this case, it should be written in the paper that the informed consent has been
obtained. However, it is also necessary that the patients commit themselves not to tell anyone that the
paper refers to him or her (this would mean breaking the professional secret, and the responsibility for
this would lie with the author of the paper). The author has therefore he obligation to ask the patient to
commit to this. In case of human experiments, authors must state that the procedures followed are in
accordance with the current regulations and with the Declaration of Helsinki (1975). In case animal
experiments are reported, the authors should state that the procedures followed are in accordance with
the regulations in force in Italy, and with those in force abroad if they were carried out not in Italy.
Conflict of interest
A conflict of interest may exist when an author (or the author’s institution), a referee or a member of the
editorial office has personal or economic relationships that may inappropriately influence their
behaviour. Potential conflict of interest is applied even when the authors are confident that their
judgments have not been influenced in the manuscript. It is up to the editors to manage as best as
possible such conflicts, and the authors may be requested to submit a statement on this issue.
based on COPE’s Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors
The decision to publish and the duties of the editorial office
The managing director, the editor in chief and the other members of the editorial board of the journal
are responsible for the decision to publish articles submitted for publication. The editors are bound by
the provisions of the law in force regarding libel, copyright infringement and plagiarism. The editorial
board has support from reviewers, who are selected among the members of the scientific advisory
board or other reviewers, in making this decisions, according to a double-blind peer review procedure.
The members of the editorial board guarantee that all intellectual work submitted for publication will be
discussed from a strictly scientific point of view, no matter the race, sex, sexual orientation, religion,
ethnic origin, citizenship, political or academic stance of the authors. The editorial board may give
information about the manuscript content only to the author, reviewers, potential reviewers, publisher
or other editorial advisers. In case of unpublished materials this should not be used by the members of
the editorial board in their benefit without the written consent of the author. If the editor finds or
receives signaling of a significant problem regarding errors or inaccuracies, conflict of interest or
plagiarism in an article published, it shall promptly inform the author and the publisher and take the
necessary steps to clarify the matter and, if necessary, withdraw the article or publish a retraction or an
errata corrige.
Duties of reviewers
Reviewers assist the editorial board in making editorial decisions and through the editorial
communications with the author may also assist the author in improving the paper. Any selected
referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its prompt
review will be impossible should notify the editor and excuse himself from the review process. Any
manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents and must not be shown to
or discussed with others except those authorized by the editor. Reviews should be conducted
objectively. Referees should express their views clearly and with supporting arguments. It is also their
role to indicate the sources or bibliography that would be relevant for the article under scrutiny. Any
kind of similarity between the manuscript and other published paper, must be immediately brought in to
notice to the editorial board. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept
confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which
they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or
connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.
Duties of authors
The authors must guarantee that their works are original and if they use the work or the words of
others that there is no fabrication, that credit is given and the other authors are mentioned explicitly.
Authors should also cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the
reported work.
Authors of reports of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed as
well as an objective discussion of its significance. Underlying data should be represented accurately in
the paper. A paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work.
Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.
Manuscripts submitted to the journal must not have been published as copyrighted material in other
publications. The manuscripts under review by the journal should not be submitted at the same time to
other journals. By submitting a manuscript, the author or authors agree that, once accepted, their work
will be published under a creative commons license. The authors remain the sole owners of the
publishing rights.
The literary paternity of a manuscript is limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the
conception, design, execution or interpretation of the study. All those who have made significant
contributions to the manuscript must be listed as co-authors. When there are others who have
participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project, they should be acknowledged or
listed as contributors.
The corresponding author should guarantee that all of its co-authors are included on the paper, that
they have seen and approved the final version and that they have agreed on its submission for
publication. Authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of
interest that may influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial
support for the project should be indicated. When an author discover a significant error or inaccuracy in
the published manuscript, it is his duty to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate
with them in order to correct the manuscript. The exposure of clinical material should be done in a way
that makes it impossible to identify the patient. If there is even the slightest doubt that the absolute
anonymity of the patient mentioned in the paper is not … achieved it is necessary to obtain the
informed consent. In this case, it should be written in the paper that the informed consent has been
obtained. However, it is also necessary that the patients commit themselves not to tell anyone that the
paper refers to him or her (this would mean breaking the professional secret, and the responsibility for
this would lie with the author of the paper). The author has therefore he obligation to ask the patient to
commit to this. In case of human experiments, authors must state that the procedures followed are in
accordance with the current regulations and with the Declaration of Helsinki (1975). In case animal
experiments are reported, the authors should state that the procedures followed are in accordance with
the regulations in force in Italy, and with those in force abroad if they were carried out not in Italy.
Conflict of interest
A conflict of interest may exist when an author (or the author’s institution), a referee or a member of the
editorial office has personal or economic relationships that may inappropriately influence their
behaviour. Potential conflict of interest is applied even when the authors are confident that their
judgments have not been influenced in the manuscript. It is up to the editors to manage as best as
possible such conflicts, and the authors may be requested to submit a statement on this issue.
EDITORIA
Centro Sperimentale per la Promozione della Salute e l’Educazione Sanitaria
(Telefono: 075.585-7357/8036 - *Email: centro.cespes@unipg.it
Via del Giochetto, n°6 - 06126 - Perugia, Italia
Piazzale Severi,1 - 06132 -Perugia, Italia
