Every manuscript is first checked by the editorial office for scope, completeness and adherence to the author guidelines. Manuscripts outside the journal's scope are returned at this stage without external review.
Manuscripts that pass the initial check are assigned to a handling editor, who sends them for external peer review. Reviewers comment on the soundness of the methods, whether the conclusions are supported by the results, the clarity of reporting, and relevance to clinical or scientific practice.
The handling editor makes a recommendation based on the reviewers' reports. Authors receive the reviewers' comments with the decision. Where revision is requested, authors respond point by point and the revised manuscript may return to the original reviewers.
Manuscripts under consideration are confidential. Reviewers declare any conflict of interest and decline the invitation where one exists.