Writing the Scientific Paper

• Introduction• Methods• Results• Discussion• Abstract• Title

Purpose of an Abstract

• To provide a faithful, clear and concise summary of the article

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

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

Structure of Abstract

Refer to Instructions for Authors!

Maternal and Child Health Journal

250 words

Research Articles – Objectives– Methods– Results– Conclusions

Structure of Abstract

Refer to Instructions for Authors!

Maternal and Child Health Journal

250 words

Practice/Field-Based Articles – Purpose– Description– Assessment– Conclusion

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

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

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 . . .

Structure of Title

• Types—declarative, questions, catchy• Subtitles• Independent variable, dependent variable,

study population: Effect of x on y in z

• Ethnic differences in the association between gestational diabetes and pregnancy outcome

• Fine

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

• Clever

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

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

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

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

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

• Good use of subtitle

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

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