The Anatomy of a Scientific Article: IMRAD format Mwachaka

INTRODUCTION What we know What we don’t know What we need to find out Limit to only pertinent references What we don’t know What we need to find out Primary and secondary research objectives Preplanned subgroup analyses

Number of paragraphs per section: Introduction - 2 Methods - 7 Results - 7 Discussion - 6

INTRODUCTION ESTABLISH what gaps exist in knowledge, that this new research will answer Most authors follow one of a few approaches to the INTRODUCTION: The SEMINAR approach The ALARMIST approach The MUCH DISCUSSED RECENTLY (MDR) approach

METHODS section ANSWERS THE QUESTION, 'What did you do?' Describes the methods that you used. explicit, open to criticism, and reproducible by other investigators. enough detail to enable your readers to: judge whether the methods were appropriate for answering the study question judge any weaknesses in methodology that could influence the interpretation of the results repeat the study if they wish to do so.

METHODS Participant selection Variables and procedures for each primary and secondary objective Analytic methods Study design – Case report/series/Review/RCT/Meta-analysis etc Subject selection Source population Inclusion criteria Exclusion criteria Rationale for inclusion/exclusion criteria

RESULTS section Should give a factual account of what was found: the recruitment of study participants, the description of the study population the main results and ancillary analyses. Should be free of interpretations and discursive text reflecting the authors’ views and opinions.

RESULTS Decisions in presenting the results stem from the following questions: which data should be presented (and which omitted)?; in what sequence should the data be presented?; and what should be stated in the text vs tables and figures? In general, the most important results should be shown first, the least important last.

Tables and Figures Purpose May aim for about 3-4 total Concise display of information Provide several levels of detail Reduces length of text May aim for about 3-4 total Table 1: Patient characteristics Table 2-4: one for each research objective

Results NOT all data collected may need to be reported. Present your results in logical sequence in the text, tables, and illustrations. Do not repeat in the text all data in the tables or illustrations; emphasize or summarize only important observations.

DISCUSSION a brief synopsis of the key findings; consideration of possible mechanisms and explanations; comparison with relevant findings from other published studies limitations of the study; and implications of the work for practice and research.

Summary Introduction Methods Results Discussion What we know What we don’t know. What we did to find out Methods Participant selection Variables and procedures for each primary and secondary objective Analytic methods Results Patient recruitment and characteristics Evidence for first objective Evidence for second objective Evidence for third objective Discussion Summarize main finding Summarize supporting findings What are the implications/how does it change practice? Limitations Summary/conclusion