Purpose: Current Drug Therapy is a regular feature of the Journal, intended to update internists on new medications, new uses of older drugs, and current issues and controversies in applied pharmacology. Articles should focus on clinical issues relevant to an internist's daily practice and should be written in a style that is concise and easily understood and with a minimum of technical jargon.
Content: The Journal strives to publish concise articles. Current Drug Therapy articles should concentrate on only one or two clinical issues rather than survey an entire topic. Issues of less importance to daily practice (eg, molecular biology) should be covered as briefly as possible.
When discussing results of clinical studies, the absolute risk value and the number needed to treat should be included whenever possible, rather than only the relative risk and hazard ratio. We encourage the use of algorithms that help the clinician assess options in diagnosis and treatment.
When applicable, discussion of cost considerations should be included.
Format: Current Drug Therapy articles should include an abstract of around 100 words plus a list of three or four “key points.” The article should be no longer than 3,500 words, not counting references, tables, or figures, with approximately 50 references. Avoid referencing textbooks.
Include relevant reference ranges for laboratory testing results.
Authorship: Every person listed as an author must have contributed substantially to the paper according to the authorship criteria of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. The criteria are as follows:
- Each author listed must have contributed to the conception or design of the paper, or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data.
- Each author listed must have participated in drafting the paper or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
- Each author listed must have given final approval of the version to be published.
- Each author listed must have agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the paper, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Example of a Current Drug Therapy article.