Netherlands Heart Journal

The Netherlands Heart Journal uses a web-based submission and review system, http://nhj.edmgr.com/. Online submission facilitates the submission of manuscripts from authors and streamlines the reviewing and publication process. Authors may send queries concerning the submission process to: l.meester@bsl.nl.

The Journal is an English language, peer-reviewed journal and is published monthly. Papers submitted to the journal which do not adhere to the instructions for authors will be returned for appropriate revision to be in line with the instructions and then may be re-submitted.

Article categories

  • Original article. An original article should not exceed 2200 words (excluding abstract and references). Include a structured abstract (250 words), with the headings Background/Objectives, Methods, Results, Conclusion, providing the context or background for the study and stating the study’s purposes, basic procedures, main findings, and principal conclusions. It should emphasise new and important aspects of the study or observations. Provide 3-6 keywords. The article should contain the following sections: structured abstract, introduction, patients and methods (including statistical analysis), results (divided into clinical data and follow-up), discussion and conclusion. Maximum of 30 references. Maximum of five figures and three tables.
  • Review article. A review article should not exceed 3500 words (excluding abstract and references). Include an abstract (not exceeding 200 words) and a short introduction. Provide 3-6 keywords. Maximum of 30 references. Maximum of six figures and five tables.
  • Special article. A special article is an overview article of political or historical interest, and should not exceed 2500 words (excluding abstract and references). Include a short abstract (150 words) and an introduction. Provide 3-6 keywords. Maximum of 30 references. Maximum of five figures and two tables.
  • Case report. A case report should not exceed 800 words (excluding abstract and references). Include a short summary (100 words) and an introduction. Provide 3-6 keywords. Maximum of 15 references. Maximum of three figures or three tables.
  • Editorial. An editorial should not exceed 1200 words. Maximum of five references. No illustrations should be included.
  • Imaging. A submission to this section comprises one page. The article should not exceed 150 words and should have a maximum of 2 figures and 5 references. Provide 3-6 keywords.
  • Rhythm puzzle. A rhythm puzzle comprises one page for the question and one page for the answer. Maximum of five references. Maximum of two figures.
  • Letter to the editor. A letter to the editor should not exceed 500 words and should focus on a specific article published in the journal within the last 12 weeks. No original data may be included. The authors of the article cited will receive the text of the letter and will be invited to reply.
  • Study report. A report on a study should not be longer then 150 words and 1 figure or table. It is also possible to publish two figures or tables without text.

Preparation of manuscripts
Style and spelling in accordance with the Oxford English dictionary should be used. Prepare your manuscript text using a word-processing package. Texts in PDF files are not accepted. Manuscripts should be double-spaced, each page and line should be numbered.

  • Title page. The title page should include the following: 1. title (Please do not use more than 100 characters. Do not use capitals), 2. names of the authors, 3. work institutions, telephone and fax number, email address of the corresponding author, 4. Word count: include a word count for the text only (excluding abstract, acknowledgments, figure legends, and references).
  • Abstract. An abstract should follow the title page. Original articles should be accompanied by a structured abstract.
  • Keywords. Provide 3-6 keywords. Preferably use MeSH terms, see http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/meshhome.html.
  • Introduction. Provide a context or background for the study. Give only strictly pertinent references and do not include data or conclusions from the work being reported.
  • Headings. Subheadings should not exceed 50 characters. Do not use capitals.
  • Abbreviations. Please explain all abbreviations.
  • References. References should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they are first mentioned in the text. References should be placed as numbered notes in the text (superscript=1) just after the punctuation mark at the end of a statement. References should be numbered so that they will be in sequence with references cited in the text, including figures and tables; if the same source is referred to more than once, the first reference counts. The list of references should be arranged by number of the reference note. Each reference should be placed on a new line, consisting of number; names and initials of all authors (if more than 6, just list the first 6, then et al.); complete title of publication; name of the journal in the standard abbreviation according to the Index Medicus (when in doubt, write in full); year; volume; first and last page. The name of the journal should be written in italics and the volume number in bold print. The following examples serve as guidelines for a publication of a committee,1 a journal article,2 a book,3 a chapter of a book edited by...,4 and a thesis (dissertation).5
    1. 1. International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals. BMJ 1991;302:338-41.
    2. 2. Mihl C, Dassen WRM, Kuipers H. Cardiac remodelling: concentric versus eccentric hypertrophy in strength and endurance athletes. Neth Heart J 2008;16:129-33.
    3. 3. Chiu RC-J, editor. Biomechanical cardiac assist: Cardiomyoplasty and muscle powered devices. Mount Kisco, New York: Futura Publishing Company Inc., 1986.
    4. 4. Weinsteil L. Infective endocarditis. In: Braunwald E, editor. A textbook of cardiovascular medicine. Philadelphia: Saunders, 1988: 1093-134.
    5. 5. Van Leeuwen K. Infective endocarditis and cardiac surgery [thesis]. Nijmegen: Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen, 1982.
  • Tables and figures. It is difficult for editorial staff and reviewers to tell if the figures and tables that should have accompanied a manuscript were actually included unless the numbers of figures and tables that belong to the manuscript are noted on the title page.
    Tables. Each table should be laid out in Word. Do not use spaces. Tables in PDF files or PowerPoint are not accepted. Number tables consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text and supply a brief title for each. Do not use internal horizontal or vertical lines. Give each column a short or abbreviated heading. Place explanatory matter in footnotes, not in the heading. Explain all abbreviations in footnotes. For footnotes use the following symbols, in sequence: *,†,‡,§,||,¶,**,††,‡‡. Identify statistical measures of variations, such as standard deviation and standard error of the mean. Be sure that each table is cited in the text. If you use data from another published or unpublished source, obtain permission and acknowledge the source fully. Figures.
    Figures should be numbered consecutively according to the order in which they have first been cited in the text. If a figure has been published, acknowledge the original source and submit written permission from the copyright holder to reproduce the material. Figures in PDF files or PowerPoint are not accepted. Figures should be drawings in black ink or black-and-white photographs in full contrast. Symbols, lettering, and numbering should be clear and large enough to remain legible after the figure has been reduced, usually to fit the width of a single column (86 mm). Legends for illustrations should be listed on a separate sheet. When symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters are used to identify parts of the illustrations, identify and explain each one clearly in the legend. Figures should be saved in TIFF or JPEG format at a resolution of at least 300 dpi at the final printed size. Copies (that are not originals) are not accepted. Each figure should be submitted in a separate electronic file and should not be embedded in the Word document.

Page proof
The page proof is the near-final version of the text for checking purposes only. As it is very expensive to make changes at this stage, we will only accept corrections that are truly essential. We will amend errors in word division, in figures and any errors resulting from the layout process. However, we will not accept corrections regarding, for example, matters of style. All authors will receive a Word document as a copy proof. We ask you to read this carefully and use this opportunity to amend the text as required.

Conflict of interest
On submission, the editors require authors to disclose any financial associations that might pose a conflict of interest with the submitted article. All sources of funding for the work should be acknowledged in a footnote to the title acknowledgments within the manuscript, as should all the institutional affiliations of the authors. Other kinds of associations, such as consultancies, stock ownership or other equity interest or personal arrangements should be disclosed to the editors in the covering letter at the time of submission.

Copyright information
When manuscripts are submitted for publication the author will be asked to return a signed letter stating that all authors have seen and approved the paper and that it has not been published elsewhere. If illustrations/ figures are to be duplicated from previously published work, the author is responsible for obtaining written permission from the publisher. The letter containing the permission should be sent with the manuscript.

Submission of manuscripts
Once you have prepared your manuscript according to the instructions, please go to the submission system: http://nhj.edmgr.com/. First-time users must click ‘register’ on the navigation menu at the top of the screen. The system will send an automatic e-mail with your user name and password. Detailed guidelines for authors are available on the submission site.

By submitting manuscripts, the author declares that: he/she assigns copyright, the manuscript has not been submitted before or is not currently submitted to another journal, he/she agrees that the manuscript will be evaluated by the editorial staff, the persons who contributed to this article and are identified by name agree to having their names published, he/she has authorisation to publish material that has been published before.

Contact:
info@cardiologie.nl