The Hong Kong Physiotherapy Journal (HKPJ) is the official journal of the Hong Kong Physiotherapy Association Limited (HKPA Ltd) that contributes to and documents the advancement of the principles and practice of physiotherapy.

The Journal is published twice a year. Research reports, treatment reports, technical reports, literature reviews and letters to the editor are accepted.
The Editorial Board requires authors to be in compliance with the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals (URMs); current URMs are available at External link http://www.icmje.org

Manuscript Submission

The HKPJ accepts online submission through Elsevier's Editorial System at External link http://ees.elsevier.com/hkpj/. The site will guide authors stepwise through the registration and submission process.

If assistance is needed, please contact the Editor-in-chief at:
Dr Marco Pang
Editor-in-Chief
Hong Kong Physiotherapy Journal
Department of Rehabilitation Sciences
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Hunghom, Hong Kong SAR
E-mail: Marco.Pang@inet.polyu.edu.hk
Tel: (852) 2766-7156 | Fax: (852) 2330-8656

Important information

Authors are requested to ensure that submissions adhere exactly to the stated instructions and format. Manuscripts that do not conform to the approved format will be returned without editorial review.

  • Articles submitted should be in Microsoft Word document format (*.doc or .docx) and prepared in the simplest form possible. We will add in the correct font, font size, margins and so on according to the journal's style.
  • You may use automatic page numbering, but do NOT use other kinds of automatic formatting such as footnotes, endnotes, headers and footers.
  • Put text, references, and table/figure legends in one file.
  • Figures must be submitted as separate picture files (in *.TIFF or *.JPG format), at the correct resolution of a minimum of 600 dpi. The files should be named according to the figure number and format, e.g. "Fig1.tif", "Fig2.jpg".
  • Please ensure that the following documents are included.
(1) A cover letter. It must include your name, address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address (both of the first author and corresponding author), and state that all authors have contributed to the paper and have never submitted the manuscript, in whole or in part, to other journals. Your signature and those of ALL your co-authors must be included.

(2) A conflict of interest disclosure statement (see relevant section below).
(3) A signed copyright transfer statement and ethics statement form (you may use the form that follows these author instructions).
(4) Articles covering the use of human samples in research and human experiments must be accompanied by a letter of approval from the relevant review committee (see relevant section below).
(5) Articles covering the use of animals in experiments must be accompanied by a letter of approval from the relevant authorities.
(6) Articles where human subjects can be identified in descriptions, photographs or pedigrees must be accompanied by a signed statement of informed consent to publish (in print and online) from each subject who can be identified (see relevant section below).
(7) Where material has been reproduced from other copyrighted sources, the letter(s) of permission from the copyright holder(s) to use the copyrighted sources must be supplied.


Disclosure of conflicts of interest

Ensure that any financial and non-financial conflicts of interest are explicitly declared (the detailed information is available at External link http://www.icmje.org/ethical_4conflicts.html). All authors are required to sign and submit a disclosure form for potential conflicts of interest at the time of manuscript submission.
Authors who have no relevant financial interests should provide a statement indicating that they have no financial interests related to the material in the manuscript.

Ethical approval of studies and informed consent

For human or animal experimental investigations, appropriate institutional review board or ethics committee approval is required, and such approval should be stated in the methods section of the manuscript. For those investigators who do not have formal ethics review committees, the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki should be followed (World Medical Association. Declaration of Helsinki: ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects. Available at: External link http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/b3/17c.pdf).

For investigation of human subjects, state explicitly in the methods section of the manuscript that informed consent was obtained from all participating adult subjects and from parents or legal guardians for minors or incapacitated adults, together with the manner in which informed consent was obtained (oral or written).

Identification of patients in descriptions, photographs and pedigrees

A signed statement of informed consent to publish (in print and online) patient descriptions, photographs and pedigrees should be obtained from all subjects (parents or legal guardians for minors) who can be identified (including by the subjects themselves) in such written descriptions, photographs or pedigrees. Such persons should be shown the manuscript before its submission. Omitting data or making data less specific to de-identify patients is acceptable, but changing any such data is not acceptable.

Previous publication or duplicate submission

Submitted manuscripts are considered with the understanding or electronic format (except in abstract or poster form) and are not under consideration in totality or in part by another publication or electronic medium.

Basic Criteria

Articles should be written in English (using UK English spelling) and meet the following basic criteria: the material is original, the information is important, the writing is clear and concise, the study methods are appropriate, the data are valid, and the conclusions are reasonable and supported by the data.

Types of Manuscripts
  • Research Report: a report of an original research study of any nature (clinical, scientific, professional or educational) using an acceptable method or design to address a research question or test a hypothesis.
  • Treatment Report: a report on the clinical management of a patient or a series of patients that provides new insights into the treatment or natural history of a clinical condition.
  • Technical Report: an original report that describes the specifications, mechanical or technological aspects and evaluation of device(s) used in assessment, treatment, management or education.
  • Literature Review: a critical appraisal of literature on a specific topic which may further the viewpoint or theoretical approach to that topic. References should be sufficient to support opinions but not excessive. These reviews are normally written by acknowledged experts and usually by invitation. Potential authors may nominate themselves through communication with the Editor-in-Chief. Invited reviews will also go through the usual review process.
  • Letter to the Editor: correspondence relating to matters published in the Journal is especially welcome, as are other communications which will stimulate discussion of relevant subjects. Decisions regarding publication of letters are made by the Editor-in-Chief.
Manuscript Preparation

Manuscripts should be prepared in Microsoft Word document format (*.doc or .docx). Text should be typed double-spaced on white A4 (297 x 210 mm) paper, with outer margins of 3 cm. Pages should be numbered consecutively on the lower right-hand corner, beginning with the title page. A manuscript should include a title page, abstract, main text, acknowledgements, references, figures and tables as appropriate.

Title page

The title page should contain the following information (in order):
  • article category
  • article title
  • authors' names* with their highest academic qualification, current position and affiliated institutions
  • a running title not exceeding 50 characters
  • corresponding author details (name, a complete mailing address, e-mail, telephone and fax numbers)
  • date of submission
  • details in the footnote if the work was supported by a grant or other funding source or if the paper was adapted from a conference presentation
*The name of each author should be written with the family name last, e.g. Jing-Long Huang. Authorship is restricted only to direct participants who have contributed significantly to the work.

Abstracts

Abstracts should be no more than 200 words in length. Abstracts are unstructured, but should include the significance and purpose of the study. A maximum of 5 relevant key words in alphabetical order should also be provided according to the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus (available at www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/meshhome.html).

Main text

The main text should not exceed 5,000 words. The main text should be well organized and written in simple and correct English under appropriate headings. For research reports, the IMRAD format is recommended.

Abbreviations
Abbreviations should be kept to a minimum. Where a term/ definition will be continually referred to, it must be written in full when it first appears in the text, followed by the subsequent abbreviation in parentheses. Thereafter, the abbreviation may be used.

Units
Système International (SI) units must be used, with the exception of blood pressure values which are to be reported in mmHg. Please use the metric system for the expression of length, area, mass, and volume. Temperatures are to be given in degrees Celsius.

Names of drugs, devices and other products
The generic term should be used, unless the specific trade name is directly relevant to the discussion. When proprietary (brand) names of drugs, implants and instruments, etc. are necessary, complete manufacturing details including the name of the company, city, state and country should be provided.

Statistical requirements
Statistical analysis is essential for all research papers. Use correct nomenclature of statistical methods (e.g. two sample t test, not unpaired t test). All p values should be presented to the third decimal place for accuracy, unless they are less than 0.001. Descriptive statistics should follow the scales used in data description. Inferential statistics are important for interpreting results and should be described in detail.

Acknowledgements

General acknowledgements for consultations, statistical analysis, etc., should be listed concisely at the end of the text, including the names of the individuals who were directly involved. Consent should be obtained from those individuals before their names are listed in this section.
All financial and material support for the research and work from internal or external agencies, including commercial companies, should be clearly and completely identified. Ensure that any financial and nonfinancial conflicts of interest are explicitly declared.

References

In the main text, tables and figure legends
  • References in the text should be placed where relevant, be in consecutive Arabic numbers, and set in square brackets.
  • References cited in tables or figure legends should be included in sequence at the point where the table or figure is first mentioned in the main text.
  • Do not cite uncompleted work or work that has not yet been accepted for publication (i.e. "unpublished observation", "personal communication") as references.
  • Do not cite abstracts unless they are the only available reference to an important concept.

In the references section
  • References should be limited to those cited in the text and listed in numerical order, NOT alphabetical order.
  • References should include (in order): author names, article title, journal name, year, volume and inclusive page numbers. The last names and initials of all the authors up to 6 should be included, but when authors number 7 or more, list the first 6 authors only followed by "et al".
  • Abbreviations for journal names should conform to those used in MEDLINE.
  • If citing a website, provide the author information, article title, website address and the date you accessed the information.
  • Reference to an article that is in press must state the journal name and, if possible, the year and volume.
Authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of their references and for correct text citation.

Examples are shown below:

Reference to a journal publication
[1] Van der Geer J, Hanraads JAJ, Lupton RA. The art of writing a scientific article. J Sci Commun 2000;163:51-9.

Reference to a book
[2] Strunk Jr W, White EB. The elements of style. 3rd ed. New York: Macmillan; 1979.

Reference to a chapter in an edited book
[3] Mettam GR, Adams LB. How to prepare an electronic version of your article. In: Jones BS, Smith RZ, editors. Introduction to the electronic age. New York: E-Publishing Inc; 1999, p. 281-304.

Figures

The number of figures should be restricted to the minimum necessary to support the textual material. They should have an informative figure legend and be numbered in the order of their citation in the text.
All symbols and abbreviations should be defined in the legend. Patient identification should be obscured. All lettering should be done professionally and should be in proportion to the drawing, graph or photograph.
Photomicrographs must include an internal scale marker, the type of specimen, original magnification and stain. Figures must be submitted as separate picture files (e.g. TIFF, JPG, etc.) at the correct resolution of a minimum of 600 dpi. The files should be named according to the figure number and format, e.g. "Fig1.tif", "Fig2.jpg". The cost of colour illustrations will be charged to the author.

Tables

Tables should supplement, not duplicate, the text. They should have a concise table heading, be self-explanatory, and numbered consecutively in the order of their citation in the text.
Information requiring explanatory footnotes should be denoted using superscript lowercase letters (a, b, c, etc.), with the footnotes arranged alphabetically by the superscripts. Abbreviations used in the table must be defined and placed after the footnotes. If you include a block of data or table from another source, whether published or unpublished, you must acknowledge the original source.

The Editorial and Peer Review Process
  • As a general rule, the receipt of a manuscript will be acknowledged within 2 weeks of submission, and authors will be provided with a manuscript reference number for future correspondence. If such an acknowledgement is not received in a reasonable period of time, the corresponding author should contact the Editorial Office.
  • Manuscripts are reviewed initially by the Editors, who will determine which articles will be considered for publication based on their scientific merit, readability and interest. Manuscripts with insufficient priority for publication are rejected promptly.
  • Manuscripts are then sent simultaneously to 2 reviewers/ expert consultants for peer review. The HKPJ adopts a double-blind review process. The Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to make the final decision regarding the acceptance or rejection of manuscripts.
  • Authors will usually be notified within 4 weeks of whether the submitted article is accepted for publication, rejected, or subject to revision before acceptance. However, do note that delays are sometimes unavoidable.
On Acceptance

Once a manuscript has been accepted for publication, the authors should submit the final version of their manuscript through Elsevier's Editorial System.
Accepted manuscripts are copyedited according to the journal's style and the galley proofs in the form of a PDF file are e-mailed by the Publisher to the corresponding author for final approval. Authors are responsible for all statements made in their work, including changes made by the copy editor.

Publication Charges and Reprints

The Journal will bear the cost of publication for articles. Colour figures, tables and illustrations will be accepted for electronic publication and will be printed in greyscale. When a manuscript requires colour printing, authors will be charged US$200 per page for the cost of colour prints. Authors must inform the HKPJ upon manuscript acceptance if they intend to keep any colour figures, tables and illustrations for printing.
Authors will receive an electronic version (a PDF file) and 25 stapled offprints of their article free of charge. Professional reprints (which include a cover page for the article) may be ordered at prices based on the cost of production. A reprint order form is available from www.hkpj-online.com.

Copyright

Published manuscripts become the permanent property of Elsevier and may not be published elsewhere, in any media and in any language, without written permission.

• Submission Checklist

• Copyright Transfer, Authorship Statement, Conflict of Interest Statement, and Ethics Statement Form