International Arab Journal of Dentistry

Instructions for authors

The International Arab Journal of Dentistry (IAJD), owned and published by Saint Joseph University of Beirut, welcomes submissions across dentistry and oral health sciences. These instructions explain how to prepare and submit a manuscript. For the journal’s full requirements on peer review, research ethics, authorship, AI, data sharing, copyright, licensing, misconduct, and post-publication updates, consult the Editorial Policies page.

These instructions apply to all manuscripts submitted on or after September 1, 2026. Manuscripts submitted before this date will continue to be handled according to the requirements in effect at the time of submission, unless otherwise communicated by the Editorial Office.

Before You Submit

Article Types

IAJD considers the following article types:

• Original Articles, including RCTs
• Case Reports and Case Series
• Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses
• Review Articles, considered only in exceptional cases when the Editorial Board determine that the topic is particularly relevant, innovative, and educational
• Letters to the Editor, normally limited to one page and written as focused, evidence-based, and constructive correspondence
• Editorials, by invitation only

Originality and Prior Dissemination

Submit only original work that is not under consideration elsewhere. Prior dissemination as a disclosed preprint, abstract, academic thesis, conference presentation, or lecture does not by itself prevent consideration. Cite and explain any closely related prior or concurrent work. See the Editorial Policies page for full requirements on preprints, duplicate publication, text recycling, and third-party material.

Language

The manuscript must be written in clear scholarly English. The title, abstract, and keywords must also be supplied in French. Authors are responsible for language quality before submission; reviewers are not expected to provide extensive language editing.

Reporting Guidelines

Use the reporting guideline appropriate to the study design. The EQUATOR Network provides a searchable collection. Commonly relevant resources include CONSORT for RCTs, STROBE for observational studies, PRISMA for systematic reviews and meta-analyses, CARE for case reports, PROCESS for case series, and ARRIVE for animal research.

Prepare the Submission Files

Prepare two separate .docx files: a blinded Manuscript and a Title Page. The Manuscript and Title Page must be uploaded in .docx format, and the maximum upload size is 500 MB per file. Check both files carefully before uploading them through EM.

Blinded Manuscript

The blinded Manuscript is sent to reviewers. Remove author names, affiliations, contact details, acknowledgments, institution or laboratory names, file metadata, and other information that could identify the authors. Use neutral wording when referring to the authors’ institution within the text.

• English and French titles, abstracts, and keywords
• Main text and required article-type sections
• Ethical Approval and Consents statement
• References
• Tables and figures embedded near their first citation

Title Page

The Title Page is withheld from reviewers and must contain the following:

• Full article title
• Full names of all authors, with complete affiliations and email addresses
• Corresponding author’s name and email address; ORCID should be included when available
• Author Contributions statement
• Conflicts of Interest statement
• Funding statement
• Data Availability statement
• AI Contribution statement, where applicable
• Acknowledgments, where applicable

For initial submission, all required declarations should be included on the separate Title Page and not in the anonymized manuscript file. Where the manuscript is accepted, the applicable declarations will be included in the published article.

Supplementary Materials

Supplementary materials are optional. Supplementary files may include additional figures, tables, datasets, videos, questionnaires, protocols, analyses, or other supporting material. Name and cite each file clearly in the manuscript, for example Figure S1 or Table S1. Remove identifying information from any file provided to reviewers. Supplementary files may be published as submitted, so authors must check their accuracy, permissions, confidentiality, and presentation.

File and Manuscript Formatting

• Prepare the text in Times New Roman, 12-point font, with clear headings and consistent formatting.
• Use SI units and conventional scientific nomenclature.
• Keep tables editable and embed tables and figures in the Manuscript rather than uploading them as separate image-only files.

Manuscript Content

Title, Abstract, and Keywords

Use a concise and informative title and identify the study design where relevant. Avoid references and unexplained abbreviations in the title.

Provide English and French versions of the title, abstract, and keywords. Abstracts should be self-contained, citation-free, and no longer than 250 words. Use a structured abstract for Original Articles and Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Case Report and Case Series abstracts should summarize the clinical problem, diagnosis, intervention, outcome, and clinical relevance.

Provide four to eight keywords, separated by semicolons. Select terms from the MeSH Browser where suitable.

Original Articles

Organize Original Articles as Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion. State the research question and objective clearly; describe the design, eligibility criteria, sampling, procedures, materials, statistical analysis, ethical approval, and consent in enough detail to support evaluation and reproducibility. Present results without interpretation, then discuss the findings in relation to the literature, clinical relevance, strengths, and limitations.

RCTs must follow CONSORT. For RCT manuscripts submitted on or after September 1, 2026, prospective registration in a recognized, publicly accessible clinical trial registry before enrollment of the first participant is mandatory; retrospectively registered trials will not be considered for peer review. For RCT manuscripts submitted before September 1, 2026, retrospectively registered trials may be considered only in exceptional circumstances at the Editor-in-Chief's discretion. In such cases, authors must disclose the timing of registration and provide a clear explanation for the delay; such consideration does not guarantee peer review or acceptance. Report the registry, registration number, and registration date in the abstract and Materials and Methods.

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses

Identify the article type in the title, use a structured abstract, and follow PRISMA. Define the review question and eligibility criteria; report the information sources, full search strategy, study-selection process, data extraction, risk-of-bias assessment, and synthesis methods. Include a PRISMA flow diagram. For meta-analyses, report effect measures, heterogeneity assessment, model choice, sensitivity or subgroup analyses where relevant, and publication-bias assessment where appropriate. Prospective protocol registration in PROSPERO or another suitable registry is encouraged.

Case Reports and Case Series

Follow CARE for Case Reports and PROCESS for Case Series. Describe the patient history, clinical findings, diagnostic reasoning, treatment options, selected intervention, outcomes, complications, and follow-up. Include a clear timeline and high-quality supporting images where relevant. A follow-up period of at least one year is strongly encouraged when it is clinically appropriate. Case Series should also report inclusion criteria, consistent methods, and outcomes across all cases.

Written consent for publication must be obtained and retained for every Case Report and Case Series. Do not upload consent forms with the manuscript; provide them securely only if requested by the Editor.

Review Articles

Review Articles are considered only in exceptional cases. Authors must obtain prior approval of the proposed topic from the Editorial Board before preparing or submitting the full manuscript. The proposed topic should be relevant, innovative, and contribute valuable knowledge to the journal’s readership. Define the objective and scope, describe how the literature was identified and selected, critically analyze the evidence, identify limitations and controversies, and explain the clinical or educational relevance. A simple descriptive summary of publications is insufficient.

Letters to the Editor and Editorials

Letters to the Editor should address one focused scientific, clinical, or methodological point and remain professional, evidence-based, and constructive. They are normally limited to one page. Editorials are commissioned by invitation and should follow the instructions in the invitation. Letters to the Editor and invitation-only Editorials undergo editorial review only and are not sent for external double-blind peer review. The Editor-in-Chief makes the final publication decision and may request revisions or corrections before acceptance.

References

Use Vancouver style. Number references in the order in which they first appear and cite them in square brackets: [1], [1, 6, 7], or [1-5]. Check every reference for accuracy and completeness. Use standard journal abbreviations and include DOI information when available.

Journal article format: “Author AA, Author BB. Article title. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Pages.”

Book chapter format: “Author AA, Author BB. Chapter title. In: Editor AA, editor. Book title. City: Publisher; Year. p. xx-xx.”

Figures

• Embed each figure near its first citation and number figures in order.
• Use TIFF or PNG at a minimum of 300 ppi and ensure labels remain legible when reduced.
• Place a self-contained legend below each figure and identify multi-panel figures with consistent lowercase letters.
• Do not create or alter figures with GenAI. Disclose relevant image processing and retain the original, unprocessed files.
• Remove identifying labels and metadata unless identifiable material is scientifically necessary and covered by written consent for publication.

Tables

• Create editable tables that supplement rather than duplicate the text.
• Number tables in order, cite each table in the text, place the title above the table, and place notes below it.
• Use a period as the decimal separator and do not submit tables as images or protected read-only objects.
• Tables should be embedded in the text near their first citation, rather than placed at the end of the manuscript

Required Statements and Declarations

Authors should consult the Editorial Policies page for full details of the journal’s policies regarding each declaration. Use the headings and status rules below. Statements must be complete, accurate, and consistent with the information entered in EM.

Funding

A Funding statement is required for all submissions. Identify every source of financial or material support, the grant number where available, and the funder’s role. If no funding was received, state this explicitly.

Funding received and the funder had a role: “This work was supported by [funder name] under grant number [grant number]. The funder had a role in [describe role, such as study design, data collection, data analysis, interpretation of results, manuscript preparation, or the decision to submit the article for publication].”

Funding received and the funder had no role: “This work was supported by [funder name] under grant number [grant number]. The funder had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, interpretation of results, manuscript preparation, or the decision to submit the article for publication.”

No funding received: “The authors received no funding for this work.”

The authors must provide this statement on the “Title Page” at the time of submission. Following acceptance, the production team will incorporate it into the appropriate declaration section of the final article before online publication.”

Conflicts of Interest

A Conflicts of Interest statement is required for all submissions. Disclose any financial, professional, institutional, academic, or personal interest that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the work. If none exist, use the statement below.

No conflicts: “The authors declare no conflicts of interest.”

Author Contributions

An Author Contributions statement is required for all submissions. For multi-author manuscripts, identify each author’s contribution using CRediT roles where appropriate. The statement must match the contributors entered in EM and must be approved by all authors.

Multi-author format: “Conceptualization, A.A. and B.B.; Methodology, A.A.; Investigation, B.B. and C.C.; Data curation, C.C.; Formal analysis, A.A.; Writing - original draft, A.A.; Writing - review and editing, A.A., B.B. and C.C.; Supervision, B.B. All authors approved the final manuscript.”

Single-author manuscript: “The sole author is responsible for all aspects of this work, including conception, analysis, drafting, revision, and approval of the final manuscript.”

Data Availability

A Data Availability statement is required for all research articles and encouraged for other article types where relevant. State whether and how the data or other research materials supporting the article can be accessed. Do not promise access that cannot be provided, and do not disclose information restricted by privacy, consent, ethics, law, or institutional requirements.

Data in a repository: “The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in [repository name] at [URL/DOI/accession number].”

Data available on request: “The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.”

Data included with the article: “The data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary materials.”

Data not publicly available: “The data that support the findings of this study are not publicly available due to privacy, confidentiality, ethical, legal, or institutional restrictions.”

No datasets generated or analyzed: “No datasets were generated or analyzed during the preparation of this manuscript.”

Not applicable: “Data availability is not applicable to this article, as no data were generated or analyzed.”

AI Contribution

An AI Contribution statement is required where applicable. Disclose any use of generative AI or AI-assisted technologies that contributed substantively to manuscript text or presentation. Standard spelling, grammar, formatting, or reference-management tools that do not generate substantive content or change scholarly meaning do not require disclosure. AI tools cannot be authors. Authors remain responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and confidentiality of the final work.

IAJD permits AI-assisted language editing under human oversight but does not permit GenAI to replace essential scholarly work, generate a complete article, or create or alter images. Any AI used as part of the research method must be described transparently in the relevant Methods section.

Disclosure: “During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used [name of tool/service] to [describe purpose of use]. The authors reviewed and revised the AI-assisted content and take full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the final manuscript.”

Ethical Approval and Consents

An Ethical Approval and Consents statement is required for all original research and where applicable for all other submissions. Combine the relevant information in one concise paragraph. Identify the approving body and approval number, and include the approval date or year where available. State any waiver, exemption, or reason that approval was not required. Include consent to participate for research involving human participants and consent for publication whenever identifiable information, images, quotations, case details, recordings, or personal narratives are included.

For animal research, identify the approving body and approval or license number, state compliance with applicable standards, and describe the species, numbers, housing, procedures, anesthesia, analgesia, humane endpoints, and measures taken to minimize suffering.

For Case Reports and Case Series, obtain written consent for publication from the patient or authorized representative even when explicit identifiers are removed. Retain all consent documents; do not upload them with the manuscript or send them by ordinary email.

Human research: “Ethical Approval and Consents: This study was approved by the [full name of ethics review body] (Approval No. [number]). All participants provided informed consent to participate in the study. Written informed consent for publication of the identifiable material in this article was obtained from the participant(s) or their authorized representative(s).”

Exempt or waived review: “Ethical Approval and Consents: The [name of ethics review body] determined that this study was exempt from full ethical review because [brief reason] (Reference No. [number], where available). All participants provided informed consent to participate. Written informed consent for publication of identifiable material was obtained where applicable.”

No applicable ethics or consent requirement: “Ethical Approval and Consents: Not applicable because this article did not involve human participants, animals, identifiable personal information, protected data, or biological material requiring ethical review.”

Remove any sentence that does not apply to the study. For example, omit the consent-for-publication sentence when no identifiable material is included.

Clinical Trial Registration

Clinical trial registration is required for RCTs. For RCT manuscripts submitted on or after September 1, 2026, the trial must have been prospectively registered in a recognized, publicly accessible clinical trial registry before enrollment of the first participant; retrospective registration is not acceptable. For RCT manuscripts submitted before September 1, 2026, retrospectively registered trials may be considered only in exceptional circumstances at the Editor-in-Chief's discretion and must include a clear explanation for the delay. Report the registry, registration number, and registration date in the abstract and Materials and Methods.

Registration: “Trial registration: [registry name], [registration number], registered [date].”

Acknowledgments

An Acknowledgments section is optional. With permission, acknowledge individuals and organizations that provided non-author support. Do not place funding or material support in this section; report it in the Funding statement.

If included, Acknowledgments must be provided on the Title Page at the time of submission and will be incorporated into the final published article following acceptance.

Third-Party Material and Permissions

Permissions for third-party material are required where applicable. Obtain and retain all permissions required for third-party text, images, tables, datasets, screenshots, audio, video, and supplementary material. Cite the original source and follow all license conditions, including attribution and identification of changes. Provide evidence of permission to the Editorial Office if requested. Full requirements are stated on the Editorial Policies page.

Submit Through EM

Submission

Submit through the IAJD Editorial Manager submission site. The submitting author must be listed as an author, must have approval from every co-author, and is responsible for the submission throughout review and publication.

Log in as an Author or register a new account.
Start a new submission and select the correct article type.
Enter complete and accurate manuscript metadata.
Upload the blinded Manuscript first and the Title Page separately.
Upload any supplementary files and complete all required declarations.
Review the compiled submission carefully before approval.

Initial Assessment and Peer Review

Upon submission, the Editor-in-Chief either handles the manuscript directly or designates a handling Associate Editor. Each manuscript undergoes a preliminary evaluation by one member of either the Editorial Board or the Scientific Committee. The Editor-In-Chief or the designated handling Associate Editor, selects this member according to the subject area and expertise required. The assigned member assesses whether the manuscript falls within the journal's scope, meets the required scientific and ethical standards, and complies with the journal's submission requirements. Submissions may be screened using iThenticate or similar software. The member submits an advisory recommendation to the Editor-in-Chief, who decides whether the manuscript should proceed to external peer review or be desk rejected. Manuscripts that do not meet the journal's requirements may be returned for correction or rejected without external review.

Manuscripts that pass initial screening enter double-blind peer review and are normally sent to two independent external reviewers. Reviewers evaluate originality, methods, scientific validity, ethics, clarity, and relevance. When the two reviewers provide substantially different recommendations—for example, when one recommends rejection and the other recommends major revision—the Editor-in-Chief or, when designated, the handling Associate Editor will refer the manuscript to the Editorial Board for evaluation. The Editorial Board will recommend either rejection or major revision to the Editor-in-Chief. If major revision is recommended, the Board will provide specific comments outlining the required changes. In some cases, the Editorial Board may recommend that the Editor-in-Chief or the designated handling Associate Editor seek an assessment from a third independent external reviewer. A recommendation supported by at least two of the three reviewers will be given particular consideration. When designated, a handling Associate Editor will evaluate all reviewers’ reports and the scientific merits of the manuscript and submit a recommendation to the Editor-in-Chief. When no handling Associate Editor is designated, the Editor-in-Chief will evaluate the reviewers’ reports directly. In all cases, the final decision regarding acceptance, revision, or rejection rests with the Editor-in-Chief.

Exceptions to External Peer Review: Letters to the Editor and invitation-only Editorials undergo editorial review only and are exempt from external double-blind peer review. The Editor-in-Chief evaluates these submissions and may request revisions or corrections before making the final publication decision.

See the Editorial Policies page for the complete Peer Review Policy.

Revised Manuscripts

Submit the revised manuscript by the deadline in the decision letter. Include a point-by-point response that reproduces each editor and reviewer comment, explains the response, and identifies the corresponding change. Give a reasoned scientific explanation when a requested change is not made. Mark revisions clearly in the revised manuscript using the method specified in the decision letter. A revised submission may be returned for further review and is not guaranteed acceptance.

After Acceptance

Production and Proofs

After acceptance, manuscripts may be copyedited, formatted, and prepared for online publication. Authors remain responsible for ensuring that their manuscripts are clear, accurate, and written in appropriate scholarly English before submission.

The corresponding author will receive a proof and must return all corrections in one response by the stated deadline. Proofs are intended for typographical or production corrections, not substantial changes to the accepted article.

Copyright and Licensing

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal a non-exclusive right to publish the article. Accepted articles are published under CC BY 4.0. Consult the Editorial Policies page for complete copyright, licensing, preprint, and repository-deposit terms.

Article Publication Charge

The APC is fully covered by Saint Joseph University of Beirut until further notice. Authors are therefore not required to pay a submission, review, acceptance, or publication fee.

Contact

International Arab Journal of Dentistry (IAJD)
Faculty of Dental Medicine, Saint Joseph University of Beirut
Medical Science Campus - Damascus Street
B.P. 11-5076 - Riad El Solh, Beirut 1107 2180, Lebanon

Editorial Office: [email protected]
Journal website: IAJD homepage