Information for Authors

Please submit the manuscript by email to JCDA@cda-adc.ca. (Note: JCDA’s manuscript submission process is being shifted to the Editorial Manager software platform. In the meantime, please use this email address for all submissions)

Scope of JCDA

JCDA is an online open access publication and publishes original English language articles that are relevant to oral health, oral health care and the practise of dentistry. and that broadly discuss the main issues facing the Canadian dental profession today and potentially in the future. We prioritize research conducted in Canada and authors (defined as meeting the criteria of authorship - see preparing your submission) who have Canadian affiliations.

Journal policies

1. Copyright transfer
   All accepted manuscripts and their accompanying illustrations become the permanent property of the CDA, owner and publisher of JCDA, and may not be published elsewhere in full or in part, in print or electronically, without written permission from the CDA.

   A Copyright Transfer Agreement is available on this page. It should be signed by all authors and submitted along with the manuscript (see preparing your submission).

2. Plagiarism
   To avoid plagiarism, please do not use language, content or concepts of another source without appropriate citation. Do not use extensive verbatim or near verbatim portions of text from another source, even with appropriate citation. Any material within the manuscript (including Tables and Figures) that has appeared elsewhere must be cross-referenced and permission to use or adapt the material must be obtained.

3. Reprints/Republishing
   JCDA may grant reprint permissions but in all cases a written request must be made. We further ask that a full citation of the original article is also published.

   Please email reprint permission requests to: JCDA@cda-adc.ca Please specify the reference details of the requested material, the intended use of the material and the name of the publication where the reprinted material will appear.

Types of manuscripts considered for publication

Note: Word count limits are inclusive of Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion and Conclusion (main body of the manuscript) and exclude the cover page, title page or any other sections of the main text.

1. Applied Research
   These are submissions that report findings of original investigative research. Types of studies include those in epidemiology, diagnostics, biomaterials, imaging and microbiology. These manuscripts can address topics pertaining to oral health, oral health care, clinical practice and decision making, demographics, dental education, dental ethics, public health, etc. The word count of the manuscript should not exceed 3000 words.

2. Reviews
   These are submissions that assess the existing literature and data on a topic to identify gaps in knowledge and provide evidence-based summaries and/or recommendations. Acceptable studies include reviews conducted using a systematic approach (i.e., umbrella review, meta-analysis and systematic review), rapid reviews and scoping reviews. It would be beneficial to JCDA’s readership if these manuscripts address topics that can inform clinical practice. The word count of the manuscript should not exceed 3000 words.

3. Professional Issues
   These are submissions that help the dental practitioner understand and adapt to the changing professional environment. Types of studies could include manuscripts that provide an evidence-based evaluation (see preparing your submission) of issues related to topics such as professional regulation, health policy, and inform decision-making by providing actionable recommendations. The word count of the manuscript should not exceed 2,500 words.

4. Meeting Reports
   These include summaries of recent meetings, symposiums, conferences or workshops that have taken place in Canada (or in certain instances internationally) which focus on topics relevant to Canadian dentistry. Links to full reports or proceedings can be included along with the condensed meeting reports. The word count of the manuscript should not exceed 1,500 words.

Preparing your submission

JCDA endorses the ICMJE’s (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals.

1. Style guidelines

   • Pages should have 1-inch margins
   • Use a single, standard typeface (preferably Source Sans Pro, Size 12).
   • Spacing: 1.5; Single spaces between paragraphs
   • Bold Table and Figures referenced in manuscript body
   • Use of Proprietary Names: Generic names should ideally be used for all drugs and materials. When a trade name must be used, cite (in parentheses) the name, city, province/state and country of the manufacturer.

2. Cover letter
   The cover letter should be submitted as a separate file.

   Include a statement that the manuscript is original, that the manuscript and the material within it has not been published and are not being considered for publication elsewhere in whole or in part, except as an abstract, and that the final version has been seen and approved by all authors. The authors should include a brief explanation in the cover letter if any of the above considerations have not been met.

   The authors should inform JCDA if the work has been previously posted on a preprint server.

3. Title page
   The title page should be submitted as a separate file.

   The title page should contain:

   • The title of the manuscript. The title should concisely reflect the content of the manuscript and not contain abbreviations.
   • Each author’s complete given and family names, earned academic degrees (not honorary degrees), professional titles, primary institutional affiliations and addresses, as well as the institution (if different from authors’ primary affiliation) where the study was conducted. We prefer current professional titles/affiliations, not those that an author has held previously.
   • Complete postal address, telephone and email address of the author responsible for correspondence relating to the manuscript.
   • The abstract word count, word count of main text (Introduction to Conclusion), total number of Tables and Figures (not to exceed 8 in total) and total number of references (not to exceed 35).

4. Main text of the manuscript
   Please submit the manuscript by email to JCDA@cda-adc.ca.

   Authors should adhere to the following arrangements when preparing their submission for Applied Research, Reviews and Professional Issues articles. We understand if other section headings may be needed in case of submissions of Meeting Reports.

   All headings described in this section will be included in the published paper.

   Two separate Word files, a blinded and non-blinded version, of the main text should be submitted. Ensure that all identifying information (author names, initials, institutions names, names in acknowledgements /disclosures /tables /figures /supplemental files) is removed from the blinded version (e.g., XXX University).

   The main text should be arranged in the following order:

   • Title of the manuscript, Abstract and Keywords
     The abstract can be up to 250 words in length. Structure it as follows:

     • Background: the context and purpose of the study
     • Methods: how the study was conducted
     • Results: any relevant findings
     • Conclusion: a brief summary and potential implications of the results

     Keywords: Provide 3 – 7 keywords representing the main content of the manuscript. It is recommended that keywords be selected from Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) to be used for indexing of articles.

     Depending on the type of manuscript, additional information can be included as needed (e.g., trial registration number for clinical trials).

   • Main body (begin on a new page)
     The length of the main body may vary, depending on the type of manuscript. See the section "Types of manuscripts considered for publication” for information about word count. Structure the main body in the following sections:

     • Introduction:
     • Materials and Methods:
     • Results:
     • Discussion:
     • Conclusion:

     Depending on the type of study and/or research design, authors are asked to follow the respective reporting guidelines (e.g., STROBE, CONSORT, etc.) to determine what is to be included in the abstract and each section of the main body, and to describe the study in enough detail. Please see appropriate reporting guidelines in EQUATOR (Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research). https://www.equator-network.org/reporting-guidelines/

     For studies involving human participants, authors should provide information pertaining to approval from institutional review boards and seeking informed consent from participants in the Materials and Methods section. When reporting experiments on animals, authors should provide information on institutional review and indicate whether institutional and national standards for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed. The above information should also be provided in case of using human or animal specimens.

   • Author contributions
     Authorship is determined by the following criteria and authors are asked to specify the individual contributions of each author in relation to each of the below.

     • Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND
     • Drafting the work or reviewing it critically for important intellectual content; AND
     • Final approval of the version to be published; AND
     • Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

     Authors’ initials can be used to write this section. As an example:

     “All authors substantially contributed to the conception and design of the larger study as well as interpretation of the data. AB and CD were primarily responsible for acquisition and analysis of the data. AB drafted the first version of the manuscript, which was critically reviewed by CD, EF and GH. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work.”

     Contributors who do not meet all criteria for authorship should be listed in the Acknowledgements section.

   • Acknowledgments
     Any contributors who do not meet the authorship criteria should be named here. Additionally, individual/organizations who have contributed in the following capacity should also be listed in this section: funders and/or acquisition of funding (sources of support in the form of grants, equipment, materials or drugs); general supervision of a research group or general administrative support; and writing assistance, technical editing, language editing, and proofreading. Authors are recommended to take written permission from all acknowledged individuals/organizations.

   • Data availability statement
     Authors are required to provide a data availability statement for the data which supports the results of the submitted manuscript. Authors can provide information on the shared data (e.g., link to the repository, etc.) or if the data cannot be shared, then authors can explain the reason for doing so.

   • Disclosures
     Authors are required to disclose any sources of financial, professional or personal interests that may present a conflict in relation to the submitted paper.

     Authors are also required to disclose if and in what capacity they used artificial intelligence (AI) – assisted technologies (such as Large Language Models [LLMs], chatbots, or image creators) during research and/or in the production of the submitted paper. Chatbots (such as ChatGPT) should not be listed as authors. Note that in cases where AI is used to any extent, the editorial team will have the final say in determining the appropriateness of the manuscript for JCDA.

   • References (begin on a new page)

     • General guidelines:
       • Emphasize recent references as much as possible (ideally within 10 years).
       • We strongly prefer that the number of references should not exceed 35 (review articles will be assessed on a case-by-case basis).
       • Avoid referencing letters to the editor or editorials, abstracts, unpublished observations, manuscripts in preparation or those submitted/accepted but not yet published, personal communications or sources from journals that do not follow recognized editorial and peer review standards.
       • It is preferred that references be for material published in either English or French.
       • AI-generated material should not be referenced.
       • When preprints are cited in submitted manuscripts, the citation should clearly indicate that the reference is a preprint.
       • Authors should cite any dataset stored in external repositories that are mentioned within their manuscript.
     • Style and Format:
       • Number references in the order in which they first appear in the text. Arrange them numerically, not alphabetically, in the reference list.
       • In the text, references should be superscripted and appear after periods and commas (please do not use the Footnote function).
       • References cited only in tables or figure legends should be numbered in accordance with the sequence established by the first identification in the text of the table or figure.
       • Note: Failure to comply with the above reference guidelines may result in authors having to renumber all references in their manuscript at a later stage.
       • Italicize journal name, insert clickable links for DOI in references and if no DOI is available provide a link to Pub Med.
         e.g; Smart R, Pacula RL. Early evidence of the impact of cannabis legalization on cannabis use, cannabis use disorder, and the use of other substances: Findings from state policy evaluations. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse. 2019;45(6):644-63. https://doi.org/10.1080/00952990.2019.1669626
       • Follow the style advocated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICJME) and refer to the following link for more examples: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html

5. Tables and Figures

   • Submit tables and figures in separate files. (Note the size of a file cannot exceed 2 MB)
   • Authors should limit the number of tables and figures to no more than 8 in total.
   • Number tables and figures sequentially with Arabic numerals (e.g., Table 1, Figure 1) in order of their first citation in the text.
   • Begin each table/figure on a separate page and include a title which is concise yet comprehensive.
   • Provide units of measurement in rows and columns wherever applicable and these should be consistent with the manuscript's text.
   • Authors should place explanatory matter for non-standard abbreviations, symbols, etc. in footnotes and not in the title.
   • It is recommended that tables/figures be understandable without reference to the text. They should not duplicate the text.
   • Provide all tables and figures in an editable file format when submitting your manuscript
   • Digital images should be at least 300 dots per inch (dpi) when sized to 3.33" x 2.125" (or at least 1000 pixels along the largest dimension). TIFF or JPG file formats are preferred.
   • Photographs in which a patient is identifiable must be accompanied by the patient's written permission to publish the photographs.

6. Copyright transfer form and financial disclosure statement
   Copyright Transfer Forms and Financial Disclosure Statements, which can be found below, are to be signed by all authors and submitted as separate files. These will not be included in the published paper.

7. Supplemental files
   Any additional files that authors would like to submit to further facilitate the peer review process can be submitted as a separate supplemental file (e.g., survey instrument, interview guides, etc.). These files will also be sent for peer review. Note if the manuscript is accepted for publication, these files may be hosted online and made accessible via a link on the article’s webpage.

The peer review and publication process

1. Submission is prepared as per preparation instructions and author’s checklist (see below) and is submitted to JCDA@cda-adc.ca
2. An initial check is conducted to determine if all required material is submitted and is in the correct format, and whether the manuscript aligns with the scope of JCDA. The decision could be to 1) accept for peer review, 2) send back for modification before re-submission or 3) reject.
3. After acceptance during initial check, reviewers with relevant expertise are invited to review the manuscript. Note that the peer review process is double blinded (there may be exceptions in certain cases).
4. The manuscript is sent to two reviewers who accept the invitation. The reviewers are asked to return their comments to the editorial team within three weeks.
5. Upon receipt, reviewers’ comments are assessed and a decision is made whether to
   • reject the manuscript (no further action)
   • revise the manuscript (see point 7 onwards)
   • accept the manuscript as is (see point 9 onwards).
6. The decision, along with advice for next steps if applicable, is communicated to the corresponding author.
7. If the decision is to revise the manuscript, the corresponding author is invited to respond (in a separate document) to reviewers’ and editorial teams’ comments and submit a revised manuscript (highlight the revised portions and/or submit a track changes version).
8. Once submitted, the response and revised manuscript are reviewed and a final decision on the acceptance of the manuscript is made. In some instances, the revised manuscripts may be sent back to the reviewers (or other subject matter experts if reviewers are not available) for their opinion.
9. Once a manuscript is accepted the corresponding author is notified, and all authors are asked to submit their photos.
10. Photos should be provided in electronic format (JPEG or TIFF files preferred), colour, 300 dpi at full size (i.e. 2.5” x 3.15”).
11. At this stage the manuscript is sent for final copyediting.
12. The corresponding author may be contacted to clarify any points that need clarification and to get approval for the edited version of the manuscript.

    The corresponding author is requested to respond to any communication from the editorial team in a timely manner to prevent delay in further processing of the manuscript.

13. After production is complete, the article is published on JCDA.ca.
14. In some cases, the abstract or an abridged version of the manuscript may appear in CDA Essentials magazine or on CDA Oasis.
15. NOTE: The journal’s editorial team will have the final say in all decisions pertaining to publication of manuscript in JCDA. In cases where a manuscript is rejected at any stage, authors can contact publications@cda-adc.ca to discuss opportunities for presenting their work in CDA Essentials magazine or on CDA Oasis.

Checklist for authors

This checklist is for the first submission of material by the authors (meeting reports can vary from this format). Additional documents will be requested by the editorial team as needed during the peer review process (see peer review and publication process). Incomplete submissions will be returned to the author. Please ensure your submission includes the following:

1. Cover letter in a separate file
2. Title Page in a separate file
3. Main Text in Microsoft Word format – blinded and non-blinded version in separate files, both arranged in the following order:
   • Title, Abstract and Keywords
   • Main Body (begin on a new page)
     • Introduction
     • Materials and Methods
     • Results
     • Discussion
     • Conclusion
   • Author contributions
   • Acknowledgements
   • Data availability statement
   • Disclosures
   • References (begin on a new page)
4. Tables in a separate file (begin each on a new page)
5. Figures in a separate file (begin each on a new page)
6. Copyright Transfer Form (signed by all authors) in separate file
7. Financial Disclosure Statements (signed by all authors) in separate file
8. Supplemental files (if any)
9. Permission(s) to reproduce previously published material or to publish photographs of identifiable persons (if applicable).