Writing the Scientific Paper Introduction Methods Results Discussion Abstract Title

Purpose of an Abstract To provide a faithful, clear and concise summary of the article

Importance of Abstract Important for 3 reasons –Allow busy readers to learn main points without reading the whole article –May persuade someone to read the whole article –Captured in computerized databases

Goals of Abstract Makes sense when read alone Conveys main results Shouldn’t contain anything not in paper Follows journal guidelines for structure and length

Structure of Abstract Refer to Instructions for Authors! Maternal and Child Health Journal 250 words Research Articles –Objectives –Methods –Results –Conclusions

Structure of Abstract Refer to Instructions for Authors! Maternal and Child Health Journal 250 words Practice/Field-Based Articles –Purpose –Description –Assessment –Conclusion

Match the Journal Context, objective, design, setting, participants, main outcome measures, results, conclusion Background, methods, results, conclusions Objective, methods, results, conclusions Background, methods, findings, interpretation Unstructured Pediatrics Lancet New England Journal of Medicine JAMA American Journal of Epidemiology

Editor’s Plea If I’m going to find a typo, it is going to be in the abstract –I suspect people write the abstract last (makes sense) PLEASE use full sentences PLEASE proofread – this is the window to your work and the reason people will read on or move on

Purpose of Title Captures reader’s attention Used to index article Represents article in reference lists Think about how your article will be found in search engines...

Structure of Title Types—declarative, questions, catchy Subtitles Independent variable, dependent variable, study population: Effect of x on y in z

Ethnic differences in the association between gestational diabetes and pregnancy outcome

Fine

Is effective contraception use conceived prenatally in Florida? The association between prenatal contraceptive counseling and postpartum conceptive use

Clever

Suicidal behavior differs among early and late adolescents treated with antidepressant agents

Gives away the conclusion of the study. Better: Suicidal behavior among early and late adolescents treated with antidepressants

Fasting might not be necessary before lipid screening: a nationally representative cross- sectional study

The title contains the implications of the study. Better: Relationship between length of fast and lipid screening levels in children

Parent involvement in pain management for NICU infants: a randomized controlled trial

Good use of subtitle

Use of models to identify cost-effective interventions: pertussis-vaccination for pediatric health care workers

Title tells little about study; main title is really subtitle. Better: Cost-effectiveness of pertussis vaccination for NICU workers