1. Editorial Assessment and Peer Review

Every submitted manuscript undergoes an initial editorial assessment to determine whether it falls within the Journal's scope and satisfies basic scientific, ethical, and technical requirements. Suitable manuscripts proceed to independent peer review by qualified experts in the relevant field. Editorial decisions are based exclusively on:

• Scientific quality
• Originality
• Methodological rigor
• Clinical relevance
• Ethical compliance
• Contribution to surgical knowledge

Editors may seek additional expert advice when manuscripts involve complex ethical, legal, biosafety, or research integrity concerns.

2. Research Integrity

Authors are expected to conduct and report research honestly, accurately, and transparently. Research must not involve:

• Fabrication of data
• Falsification of results
• Selective reporting
• Image manipulation that alters scientific interpretation
• Misrepresentation of findings

Authors should retain original research data and be prepared to provide supporting information if requested during editorial review or post-publication investigations.

3. Plagiarism

The Journal has zero tolerance for plagiarism. Authors must appropriately acknowledge the work, ideas, figures, tables, data, and text of others through proper citation.

All submitted manuscripts may be screened using plagiarism detection software before peer review and, where necessary, after publication. Manuscripts containing substantial plagiarism or unattributed copied material may be rejected immediately. If plagiarism is identified after publication, appropriate editorial action—including correction or retraction—may be taken.

4. Duplicate Submission and Redundant Publication

Manuscripts submitted to Annals of Surgery must be original and must not be simultaneously under consideration by another journal. Authors should not submit substantially similar manuscripts to multiple journals at the same time.

Previous dissemination through recognized preprint servers, institutional repositories, or academic theses may be acceptable if fully disclosed during submission. Authors must clearly identify any overlap with previously published work and appropriately reference related publications.

5. Data Fabrication and Falsification

The fabrication, falsification, or deliberate manipulation of research data represents serious scientific misconduct. Where credible evidence of misconduct exists, the Journal may:

• Reject the manuscript.
• Suspend editorial processing.
• Request original datasets.
• Notify relevant institutions where appropriate.
• Retract published articles if necessary.

6. Authorship

Authorship should accurately reflect each individual's contribution to the research. All listed authors should have:

• Made substantial scholarly contributions.
• Participated in drafting or critically revising the manuscript.
• Approved the final version.
• Accepted responsibility for the integrity of the work.

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not satisfy authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately with their permission. Requests to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission require written agreement from all authors and approval by the Editorial Office.

7. Acknowledgements

Individuals, institutions, technical assistants, medical writers, funding agencies, or organizations that contributed to the research without meeting authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from individuals named in the acknowledgements.

8. Conflicts of Interest

Transparency regarding competing interests is essential for maintaining confidence in published research. Authors, reviewers, and editors should disclose any financial, professional, institutional, personal, or other relationships that could reasonably be perceived as influencing their judgment. Examples include:

• Research funding.
• Employment or consultancy.
• Stock ownership.
• Patents or intellectual property.
• Honoraria.
• Advisory positions.
• Personal or academic relationships.
• Institutional affiliations relevant to the research.

If no competing interests exist, authors should include a statement confirming that no conflicts of interest are present.

9. Funding Disclosure

Authors must disclose all sources of financial support for the research. Funding statements should identify:

• Funding organizations.
• Grant numbers where applicable.
• The role of the funding body in study design, data collection, analysis, manuscript preparation, or publication decisions.

If no external funding was received, authors should state this clearly.

10. Human and Animal Research

Research involving human participants must have received approval from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board. Where applicable, authors should confirm that:

• Informed consent was obtained.
• Research complied with recognized ethical standards.
• Patient confidentiality has been protected.

Research involving animals should comply with institutional, national, and international guidelines governing animal welfare and ethical research practices.

11. Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers are expected to:

• Maintain confidentiality.
• Provide objective, constructive, and timely evaluations.
• Declare any conflicts of interest.
• Avoid using unpublished information for personal benefit.
• Report suspected ethical concerns to the editors.

Reviewers should decline invitations where conflicts of interest prevent an impartial assessment.

12. Editorial Responsibilities

Editors are responsible for:

• Making fair and unbiased editorial decisions.
• Preserving reviewer confidentiality.
• Managing conflicts of interest.
• Maintaining editorial independence.
• Investigating allegations of misconduct.
• Protecting the integrity of the scholarly record.

Editorial decisions are based solely on scientific merit and are never influenced by commercial or financial considerations.

13. Citation Integrity

Authors should cite literature that is directly relevant to their work. Citation practices intended primarily to manipulate citation metrics, artificially inflate journal impact, or provide unwarranted citation advantages are considered unethical. Editors and reviewers must not request unnecessary citations for personal or journal benefit.

14. Ethical Misconduct

The Journal may investigate allegations involving:

• Plagiarism.
• Duplicate publication.
• Data fabrication or falsification.
• Image manipulation.
• Authorship disputes.
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest.
• Citation manipulation.
• Ethical approval deficiencies.
• Patient confidentiality breaches.
• Other violations of accepted publication ethics.

Investigations are conducted fairly, confidentially, and in accordance with internationally accepted editorial practices.

15. Editorial Actions

Where ethical concerns are confirmed, the Journal may take one or more of the following actions:

• Request clarification or additional documentation.
• Reject the manuscript.
• Suspend editorial processing.
• Publish a correction, erratum, or corrigendum.
• Issue an editorial expression of concern.
• Retract a published article.
• Notify the authors' institution or funding organization where appropriate.
• Restrict future submissions in cases of serious or repeated misconduct.

The action taken will be proportionate to the nature and severity of the ethical issue.

16. Corrections and Retractions

The Journal is committed to maintaining an accurate and reliable scientific record. Where appropriate, published articles may be amended through:

• Errata.
• Corrigenda.
• Editorial Notes.
• Expressions of Concern.
• Retractions.

Retractions are issued only where necessary to preserve the integrity of the scientific literature and are handled in accordance with internationally recognized editorial guidance.

17. Reporting Ethical Concerns

Authors, reviewers, readers, and institutions who become aware of potential publication misconduct are encouraged to notify the Editorial Office. All credible concerns will be investigated confidentially and impartially. The Journal will make reasonable efforts to ensure that investigations are conducted fairly while respecting the rights of all parties involved.

Contact Information

Questions regarding publication ethics or research integrity may be directed to:

Editorial Office Annals of Surgery (ANNALSOPEN)
Website: www.aosopen.com
Email: info@aosopen.com