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Virtually all JMIR journals publish Original Papers, Short Papers, Tutorials, Viewpoints, Commentaries, Editorials, Reviews, and Corrigenda and Addenda. Special article types only accepted by specific JMIR journals are specified below. Protocols and Proposals are primarily published in JMIR Research Protocols, but JMIR Public Health and Surveillance also publishes Protocols and system descriptions if they are relevant for public health and form the basis for subsequent regular Rapid Surveillance Reports (see below). As of January 1, 2022, these are the only two journals that publish Protocols and Proposals. |
Article Types
- Original Paper
- Short Paper
- Review
- Viewpoint
- Tutorial
- Proposal
- Protocol
- Commentary
- Editorial
- Guest Editorial
- Letter to the Editor
- Research Letter
- Implementation Report
- Rapid Surveillance Report
- Open Source/Open Data
- Notes from the Field
- Early Reports
- Personal Perspectives
- Patient Perspectives
- Case Report
- In Memoriam
- Extraordinary Lives
Original Paper
An original paper must have a structured abstract with the following headers: Background - Objectives - Methods - Results - Conclusions - (For RCTs: Trial Registration)
The main headings in the manuscript body must be IMRD: Introduction - Methods - Results - Discussion.
If an article does not fit into this structure (e.g., if it is thin on results or more of a system description), it should be framed as a Tutorial, Viewpoint, or Proposal.
Some Original Paper article types are required to adhere to appropriate reporting guidelines, depending on the study design. For more information: What reporting guidelines should I follow for my article?
Short Paper
Short papers typically contain 1500 words or less (excluding references, tables, etc.). The rest of the requirements are the same as those of Original Papers.
Review
This article type includes scoping literature reviews, systematic literature reviews, and narrative literature reviews. Note that not all journals consider narrative literature reviews.
Studies that review or systematically analyze apps or websites are Original Papers, not literature review articles. The Review article type is reserved for studies that review other papers in the literature.
Literature reviews of any type should follow their respective recommended study design and reporting guidelines and best practices for the review type (e.g., systematic reviews should be reserved for studies that follow guidelines for systematic review conduct and reporting).
All literature reviews must have a structured abstract with the following headers: Background - Objectives - Methods - Results - Conclusions - (For systematic reviews: PROSPERO or review registration). Adherence to PRISMA for abstracts is recommended.
The main headings in the manuscript body must be IMRD: Introduction - Methods - Results - Discussion.
See: What reporting guidelines should I follow for my article?
Viewpoint
A Viewpoint is an opinion article or paper that offers a scholarly perspective that is clearly expressed with key message(s) or opinions that are evidence-based, citing peer-reviewed scientific literature appropriately. Viewpoints that also consider counterarguments or differing perspectives in a balanced manner are particularly encouraged. Original data and literature reviews are not typical features of Viewpoints. Viewpoints can include, for example, position papers as products of scientific events or workshops, or scholarly expressions of a personal experience. Authors may consider using section headers that organize the work according to the content presented. All Viewpoints should be grounded in the focus/scope of a given journal. Viewpoints are peer reviewed.
The abstract should be unstructured (narrative).
Note that Personal Perspectives are also a related article type in JMIR Mental Health and Patient Perspectives are also a related article type in the Journal of Participatory Medicine.
Tutorial
A "how-to" paper on an important practical or research issue. Submission of slides or audio/video files as supplementary files is strongly recommended.
The abstract should be unstructured (narrative), although if evaluative data are presented, the abstract should be structured with the following headers: Background - Objectives - Methods - Results - Conclusions
The main headings within the manuscript can be IMRD or free. Include "Tutorial" in the second part of the study title.
See previously published examples of tutorials here.
Proposal
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Only accepted by JMIR Research Protocols |
The Proposal article type includes grant proposals and policy proposals. The main headings within the paper can be IMRD or free. The abstract can be unstructured (narrative) or structured (i.e., Background - Objectives - Methods - Results - Conclusions - Optional: Trial Registration). If data are presented, use a structured abstract.
Policy proposals should be based on a thorough review of the literature and stakeholder consultations, workshops, consensus-building processes, etc. If it is just the opinion of an individual (or small group of individuals), submit the article as a Viewpoint.
For grant proposals, you may use the format you used for applying to the granting agency. However, we prefer that you fit your existing subheadings under the main IMRD headings ("Results" for proposals can be a very brief summary of timelines, current recruitment/enrolment status, timeline, when are results expected, screenshots of an application or flow diagrams, etc. (see: What should I put into the results section of a protocol or proposal?)
Protocol
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Only accepted by JMIR Research Protocols and JMIR Public Health & Surveillance |
All protocols should be submitted to JMIR Research Protocols. JMIR Public Health and Surveillance also publishes protocols and system descriptions if they are relevant for public health and form the basis for subsequent regular Rapid Surveillance Reports (see below).
The abstract must be structured, and a short results section must be included in both the abstract and the body text. (see: What should I put into the results section of a protocol or proposal?)
- The abstract structure should be Background - Objectives - Methods - Results (see remark above) - Conclusions - (Optional: Trial Registration).
- The article structure should be IMRD: Introduction - Methods - Results - Discussion.
- 'Results' for protocols can be a very brief summary of progress to date, recruitment/enrolment status as of a specified date, timelines, when results are expected, screenshots of an application or flow diagrams, etc. (see What should I put into the results section of a protocol or proposal?), recognizing that the format may be different.
- Reporting guidelines for protocols:
- For a clinical trial protocol, we strongly recommend adhering to the SPIRIT Guidelines for a list of items to report in a clinical trial protocol.
- For a systematic literature review protocol, we strongly recommend protocol registration (e.g., in PROSPERO) and adherence to PRISMA-P reporting guidelines.
- Although most of the protocols we currently publish are "dry lab" research, we also publish "wet lab" protocols of methods in biochemistry, genomics, etc. in JMIR Research Protocols.
Commentary
These are usually invited commentaries published alongside other articles. They may or may not be peer-reviewed.
The abstract can be a summary sentence or up to 300 words (unstructured, narrative format). The main text should be no longer than 1000 words. The main headings within the paper can be IMRD or free. Additionally, up to 10 references and a maximum of 1 figure or table can be included. (See: How do I submit a commentary?)
Editorial
Editorials may or may not be peer-reviewed (check the information at the bottom of an editorial). If an editorial contains data, we prefer to send it out for external peer review.
The abstract should be unstructured (narrative), although if data are presented, a structured abstract (Background, Objectives, Methods, Results, Conclusions) should be used. The main headings within the paper can be IMRD or free.
Guest Editorial
These editorials are invited and written by guest editors. They feature the perspectives of important researchers, clinicians, policy leaders, and patients. Guest Editorials may or may not be peer-reviewed (check the information at the bottom of an editorial). If an editorial contains data, we prefer to send it out for external peer review.
The abstract should be unstructured (narrative), although if data are presented, a structured abstract (Background, Objectives, Methods, Results, Conclusions) should be used. The main headings within the paper can be IMRD or free.
Letter to the Editor
A Letter to the Editor contains substantial comments, feedback, a critique, or additional information related to a paper previously published in a JMIR journal. (see: How to Submit a Letter for further details.)
Research Letter
Standard Requirements
Research Letters should present new, early, or preliminary research findings. The text should use standard research headings of Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion and should be no longer than 750 words, with a maximum of 10 references and 2 tables or figures. An abstract is not required, however, it is recommended to include a summary sentence about the Research Letter content in the abstract field.
Read the Editorial published in Journal of Medical Internet Research on the Research Letter article type:
Brilliant Ideas Can Come in All Sizes: Research Letters
As of August 2023, Research Letter is an article type across even more journals in the JMIR Publications portfolio, offering more options for authors to publish their high-impact work in this concise format!
Special Requirements for JMIR Dermatology
In addition to the above requirements, Cochrane Corners must also adhere to Cochrane's Co-Publication Policy.
Implementation Report
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Only accepted by JMIR Medical Informatics |
Implementation Reports present real-world accounts of the implementation of health technologies and clinical interventions. This new article type is intended to promote rapid documentation and dissemination of the perspectives and experiences of those involved in implementing digital health interventions and assessing the effectiveness of digital health projects.
Implementation Reports must have a structured abstract (450 words or less): Background - Objectives - Methods - Implementation (Results) - Conclusions - (Optional: Trial Registration). The main headings in the manuscript are structured. They do not follow the traditional IMRD format and include: Introduction - Methods - Implementation (Results) - Discussion.
The main text for this type of article should contain 3000 words or less (not including the abstract, tables, figures, acknowledgments, and references). In exceptional cases, however, the editor may allow a longer article, for example if the implementation report describes a national scale-up or a complex implementation involving several interventions.
Each report section has requirements for reporting specific to the article type. Please refer to our guidance on implementation reports, including the implementation report checklist, when preparing your article for submission.
For implementation reports with a research component, ethical approval or a waiver from an appropriate ethics committee is required. For those without a research component, ethical considerations may still be relevant, but do not necessarily require approval or waiver. Authors may consult this article for further guidance on ethical considerations in their specific context.
For JMIR Publications’ Data Sharing Policy, please see What is your data sharing policy? – JMIR Publications
iCHECK-DH: Guidelines and Checklist for the Reporting on Digital Health Implementations
Rapid Surveillance Report
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Only accepted by JMIR Public Health and Surveillance |
JMIR Public Health and Surveillance is dedicated to supporting rapid open data sharing and rapid open access to surveillance and outbreak data. As one of the novel features, we plan to publish Rapid Surveillance Reports (examples) or even real-time surveillance reports and open data.
Rapid Surveillance Reports are brief reports with unstructured abstracts, which primarily report new data in table format from an existing well-described surveillance system, making some sections redundant. The idea of this new article type is to allow rapid publication of emerging trends or continuous publication in regular intervals of public health relevant data. If a method or system description has been published previously in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance or JMIR Research Protocols, the report does not have to be peer-reviewed again (although, in many cases, they still are).
An IMRD structure for the text is recommended but not mandated. Please follow this structure as closely as possible with relevant headings.
The methods and description of the surveillance system may be peer-reviewed and published only once in detail, in a "baseline report" (in a JMIR Res Protoc or a JMIR Public Health & Surveill paper). Authors then have the possibility to publish data and reports in frequent intervals rapidly and with only minimal additional peer-review (we call this article type "Rapid Surveillance Reports"). JMIR Publications may even work with authors/researchers and developers of selected surveillance systems on APIs for semi-automated reports (e.g., weekly reports to be automatically published in JPHS and indexed in PubMed, based on data-feeds from surveillance systems and minimal narratives and abstracts).
Furthermore, during epidemics and public health emergencies, submissions with critical data will be processed with expedited peer review to enable publication within days or even in real-time.
Open Source/Open Data
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Only accepted by JMIR Public Health and Surveillance |
JPH also publishes descriptions of open data resources and open-source software. Where possible, we can and want to publish or even host the actual software or dataset on the journal website.
See the following author guidelines for the recommended article structure.
Notes from the Field
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Only accepted by JMIR Public Health and Surveillance |
Short practical case studies.
The abstract can be unstructured (narrative), although if data are presented, the structure of an Original Paper can be used.
The main headings within the paper can be IMRD or free.
Early Reports
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Only accepted by JMIR Formative Research |
Early reports, formative research articles (e.g., describing the development of an intervention), methods articles, articles describing recruitment and engagement, etc., all have the "Original Paper" format IMRD and a structured abstract (see above under "Original Paper"). However, sometimes the "Results" section may be very short.
If your submission is a Protocol, it should be submitted as such to JMIR Research Protocols.
Personal Perspectives
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Only accepted by JMIR Mental Health |
In addition to regular original papers and the other article types listed above, JMH features special sections entitled Personal Perspectives.
These articles will outline the opinions and views of leaders in the field (including industry and patients) and offer a forum to share evolving ideas. We welcome, in particular, the discussion of personal experiences with new tools, methods, apps, devices, or personal experiences about the role of technology in mental health. We will aim to publish one personal perspective per month and thus expect we will not be able to publish all potential submissions. In keeping with JMIR’s innovative publishing model, we encourage patients to submit their perspectives on mental health and technology.
Papers in this category should be 600 words or less and contain no more than 10 references. The headings are free. There should be a short unstructured abstract.
Article processing fees for Personal Perspectives in JMIR Mental Health will be heavily discounted (only US $350). They can be waived entirely for patients without funding and no commercial interest in the discussed topic.
Patient Perspectives
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Only accepted by Journal of Participatory Medicine |
This is a special article type in which patients provide free narratives on a topic. Since these papers are written by patients, they do not need a full address or phone number for the corresponding author; just City/State/Country is acceptable. We recommend including the author's Twitter handle and/or email address in lieu.
The structure of the text can be free. A short unstructured abstract is required.
Article processing fees for Patient Perspectives in Journal of Participatory Medicine will be waived.
Case Report
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Only accepted by JMIR Dermatology, JMIRx Med, Interactive Journal of Medical Research, and JMIR Formative Research |
The abstract can be unstructured (narrative), although if data are presented, the abstract structure of an Original Paper can be used (i.e., Background, Objective, Methods, Results, and Conclusion).
The main headings within the paper can be IMRD or free. A Case Report should include at least one clinical image (appropriate to the discipline).
Important: It is required for authors to attest to having obtained the necessary informed consent from the patient or their proxy. Authors should clearly state in their cover letter that they have obtained the necessary consent, and also include a statement in their manuscript also stating that they have obtained consent. Without author attestation that patient consent was obtained, a case report submission would be returned to the authors without review.
JMIR Publications does not require authors to provide the signed consent form. However, authors should be prepared to provide one if it is requested.
Authors should adhere to a standard form for obtaining patient consent that is applicable to and adheres to to local/institutional or regional/national regulations for obtaining patient consent. If none are available, authors are responsible for ensuring that a patient/proxy consent form includes all recommended elements (e.g., refer to COPE guidance). A suggested patient consent form from JMIR Publications is forthcoming.
Special Requirements for JMIR Dermatology
Any Case Report submitted to JMIR Dermatology requires a histopathological picture of each (and all) skin condition(s) described. All case reports without such images will be returned to the authors for revision.
The text should be a maximum of 1000 words, with a maximum of 10 references and up to 10 figures or images.
In Memoriam
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Currently only accepted by JMIR Dermatology |
‘In Memoriam’ articles feature posthumous tributes to highly accomplished, internationally recognized individuals in the field of the relevant JMIR Publications journal. While we invite nominations from readers, these articles are written by Editorial Board members of JMIR Publications journals. ‘In Memoriam’ articles summarize the life and impact of the individual featured. The articles should follow JMIR’s title guidelines, be at most 750 words (headings are free) and contain a black-and-white image of the referenced individual. Additionally, an 'In Memoriam' should be a recent death, which occurred in the last three years, and be written by authors who personally knew the deceased. They are not peer reviewed, and an abstract, tables and additional figures are not required.
Extraordinary Lives
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Currently only accepted by Journal of Participatory Medicine |
‘Extraordinary Lives’ articles are biographic pieces and life tributes of patients, caregivers, and professionals who exemplify what participatory medicine is all about. These represent essays celebrating and commemorating advocates and pioneers the world has lost, yet who have left a lasting impact on participatory medicine. ‘Extraordinary Lives’ articles summarize the life and impact of the individual featured. The articles should follow JMIR’s title guidelines, be at most 750 words (headings are free) and contain a black-and-white image of the referenced individual. They are not peer reviewed, and an abstract, tables and additional figures are not required.
Article processing fees for Extraordinary Lives in Journal of Participatory Medicine will be waived.
How to State the Article Type in your Manuscript
Please state the article type at the beginning of your manuscript (just before the article title), particularly if it is not a standard Original Paper.
In Microsoft Word, use the default Heading Style H2 for the article type (H1 for the article title, and H2 for all IMRD subheadings, H3 to H5 for sub-subheadings). (see: How should headings be formatted?)
Related:
What is the maximum word count? Does that include tables?
Guidelines for Writing Abstracts
What are JMIR's guidelines for article titles?
What kinds of studies do JMIR journals publish?
What reporting guidelines should I follow for my article?
What types of figures are not permitted in JMIR articles?
How many tables and figures can I include in my article?
For staff:
- typesetting wiki: Article-Type
- copyediting wiki: Article Type