1. Writing the Scientific Paper Introduction Methods Results Discussion Abstract Title

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

3. 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

4. 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

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

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

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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...

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

11. Ethnic differences in the association between gestational diabetes and pregnancy outcome

12. Fine

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

14. Clever

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

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

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

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

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

20. Good use of subtitle

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

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