The American Journal of Kidney Diseases (AJKD) servesclinicians and scientists who treat and investigate kid-ney disease and associated conditions. AJKD is dedi-cated toprovidinghigh-quality, clinically relevant infor-mation in the form of original research articles, casereports, narrative reviews, editorials, and features.

A concise version of the information for authorsfollows. The full Information for Authors and the AJKDEditorial Policies are available online at www.ajkd.orgunder For Authors.

CATEGORIES OF ARTICLES

AJKD welcomes manuscripts in the categories listedbelow. Authors should adhere to the guidelines pro-vided in the full Information for Authors.Original Investigations evaluate pathogenesis and

treatment of kidney disease and hypertension, acid-base and electrolyte disorders, dialysis therapies, andkidney transplantation. AJKD considers only manu-scripts that focus on clinical research; studies thatfocus on laboratory measurements are suitable only ifthey are directly linked to measurements or outcomesin humans. For clinical trials, AJKD requires registra-tion in a public trials registry; more informationabout the clinical trial registration policy is providedin the online Editorial Policies.

An Original Investigation has a structured abstractof 300 words or fewer, is limited to 3,500 words(excluding abstract, references, acknowledgements,tables, and figure legends), and includes the follow-ing types of studies:

i. Clinical Trialii. Observational Studyiii. Diagnostic Test Studyiv. Systematic Review or Meta-analysisv. Decision Analysis or Cost-Effectiveness Analysisvi. Quality Improvement Reportvii. Case SeriesFor all Original Investigations, authors should refer

to the recommended formats for reporting each typeof study, as described in the full Information for Au-thors. Criteria for review include validity, originality,and clinical importance.Case Reports should be succinct and original and

should have a single, well-defined message. Thesearticles are limited to 1,400 words and no more than 2figures or tables; an abstract (up to 200 words) isrequired. Case Reports consist of an Introduction,Case Report, and Discussion. The number of individu-als or patients should be 10 or fewer. Criteria for reviewinclude clinical plausibility and originality. A maximumof 8 authors is generally recommended.

Special Articles encompass content that does not fitin the aforementioned categories and may cover any

topic of interest to AJKD readers. These articles arelimited to 4,000 words and must include an abstract.Abstracts are unstructured and limited to 200 words,unless the manuscript reports original research, inwhich case the abstract may contain up to 300 wordsand is structured into the following sections: Back-ground, Methods, Results, and Conclusion.

AJKD also publishes the following features; submis-sions are welcome unless otherwise noted.

Core Curriculum:An outline providing readers witha basic analytical framework for approaching a topicin clinical nephrology. The feature is primarily in-tended for use by residency and fellowship pro-gram directors to develop educational programs.Core Curricula are written by invitation only; po-tential authors who wish to propose a topic shouldcontact the Education Editor via the editorial office(AJKD@tuftsmedicalcenter.org).

Editorial: A brief piece which provides focused com-mentary and analysis on an article published in AJKD orin another journal, or on a current issue in nephrology.In the Literature editorials evaluate recent articles pub-lished in non–nephrology journals which affect the ne-phrology community. Editorials may have up to 1,400words and may include 1 figure or table; a maximum of3 authors is generally recommended. Editorials are usu-ally invited but may be submitted without invitation.

In a Few Words: A nonfiction narrative essay whichgives voice to the personal experiences and storiesthat define kidney disease. Submissions from physi-cians, allied health professionals, patients, or familymembers are welcome, and may concern the per-sonal, ethical, or policy implications of any aspect ofkidney disease in adults and children (acute kidneyinjury, chronic kidney disease, dialysis, transplanta-tion, ethics, health policy, genetics, etc). Footnotes orreferences are discouraged. Essays may have up to1,600 words, and should be submitted via e-mail tothe editorial office (AJKD@tuftsmedicalcenter.org).

In Practice: A review providing in-depth guidanceon clinical topics beyond nephrology that affect neph-rologists daily. This feature begins with a clinical vi-gnette and then examines special considerations inthe day-to-day treatment of patients with chronickidney disease and end-stage renal disease. Thesearticles may have up to 4,000 words and 6 figures ortables; an unstructured abstract of up to 200 wordsis required. In Practice articles are generally in-vited, but potential authors who wish to propose atopic should contact the Deputy Editor via the edi-torial office (AJKD@tuftsmedicalcenter.org).

In Translation:An authoritative analysis of develop-ments in basic science with diagnostic or therapeutic

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implications in the clinical practice of nephrology.This feature includes a clinical vignette and describesthe pathogenesis of a disease process or its complica-tions as well as recent advances in the field, giving par-ticular attention to cellular and molecular mechanismsof disease and their relation to diagnostic approaches ortherapeutic applications. These articles may have up to4,000 words and 6 figures or tables; an unstructuredabstract of up to 200 words is required. In Translation isorganized into the following sections: Background (250words), Case Vignette (300 words), Pathogenesis, Re-cent Advances, and Summary. A maximum of 6 authorsis generally recommended.

Correspondence: A Letter to the Editor may be inresponse to an article in AJKD or may concern a topicof current interest in nephrology. In general, lettersshould not exceed 250 words (up to 10 references and1 figure or table may also be included) and should notlist more than 3 authors. For responses to AJKD ar-ticles, the letter must be received no more than 4weeks after the article’s date of print publication. Thereis no guarantee that letters will be published, and theyare subject to editing and abridgment without notice.For letters that discuss research findings, authors maysubmit a Research Letter, which may include up to800 words, 10 references, and a total of 2 figures ortables. Research Letters evaluate topics relevant to clini-cal practice, and include an introduction, concise meth-ods/results, and a discussion in separate paragraphs (nosubheadings are used); online supplementary materialis encouraged for detailed methods or supporting infor-mation.As reportsof casesdonot includemethods, theyare not suitable for the Research Letters section. There isno author limit for Research Letters.

Narrative Review: A review which covers any clini-cal, translational, or basic science topic of interest topractitioners. Criteria for review include originality,comprehensiveness, and balance of viewpoints. Thesearticles may have up to 4,000 words and must includean unstructured abstract of up to 200 words. Theeditors encourage the use of figures and tables (up to8 combined) to assist in the presentation of the cen-tral concepts. A maximum of 6 authors is generallyrecommended.

Quiz Page: An image-based educational feature thatrecurs monthly; images from the page often appear onthe cover of AJKD. The first section includes a conciseclinical history (200 words or fewer), a maximum of4 figures, and 1 to 4 brief questions pertaining to thecase. An answer to each question, further informationregarding the clinical entity, and a brief statement of thefinal diagnosis should be provided in a separate answersection, which may include an additional 2 to 4 figuresand in most cases should be limited to 400 words. Forinitial submission, Quiz Pages should include a stan-dard title page. A maximum of 4 authors is generallyrecommended.

TeachingCases:Kidney Biopsy Teaching Case: A case report to edu-

catecliniciansonpathologiccorrelatesofclinicalpresen-tations, with key educational points well delineated in

the discussion. These teaching cases may have up to1,800 words and no more than 4 figures or tables, mustinclude an abstract, and are organized into the followingsections: Introduction, Case Report (with 4 subsections:Clinical History and Initial Laboratory Data, Kidney Bi-opsy, Diagnosis, and Clinical Follow-up), and Discus-sion. A maximum of 4 authors is generally recom-mended.

Imaging Teaching Case: A case report to educateclinicians on interpretation and applications of imaginginclinicalnephrology.Keyeducationalpoints shouldbeclearlydelineated in thediscussion.These teachingcasesmay have up to 1,800 words and no more than 4 figuresor tables, must include an abstract, and are organizedinto the following sections: Introduction, Case Report(with 4 subsections: Clinical History and Initial Labora-tory Data, Imaging Studies, Diagnosis, and Clinical Fol-low-up), and Discussion. A maximum of 4 authors isgenerally recommended.

Acid-Base and Electrolyte Teaching Case: A casereport to educate clinicians on the pathophysiologyof various acid-base and electrolyte disorders andthe interpretation of laboratory studies. Key pointsshould be clearly delineated in the discussion. Theseteaching cases may have up to 1,800 words and nomore than 4 figures or tables, and must include anabstract. The case discussion should be dividedinto the following sections: Introduction, Case Re-port (with 4 subsections: Clinical History and InitialLaboratory Data, Additional Investigations, Diagno-sis, and Clinical Follow-up), and Discussion. A maxi-mum of 4 authors is generally recommended. Acid-Base and Electrolyte Teaching Cases are often invitedby the editors; each case is chosen specifically to em-phasize either diagnosis or treatment of a particulardisorder and to illustrate the most efficient and practi-cal approach utilized by an expert in the field. Poten-tial authors who wish to propose a topic should con-tact the Feature Editor via the editorial office(AJKD@tuftsmedicalcenter.org).

World Kidney Forum:A narrative review that exploresthe socioeconomic, geopolitical, ethical, and historicalissues related to kidney disease and the wider world ofnephrology. Submissions should be 4,000 words orfewer, and an unstructured abstract of up to 200 wordsis required. A maximum of 6 authors is generally recom-mended.

Two editors will review all manuscripts submittedto AJKD, generally within 1 week. If the editors deemthat the manuscript is unlikely to be published inAJKD, it may be rejected at this stage. With theexception of Letters to the Editor, Quiz Pages, invitededitorials, and In a Few Words, manuscripts will thenundergo external review. Further details on the reviewprocess are available in the online Editorial Policies.

INFORMED CONSENT, QUALITY IMPROVEMENTACTIVITIES, AND PRIVACY

Regardless of country of origin, all studies in humansmust include a description of appropriate safeguards(eg, local Institutional Review Board, Ministry of

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Health approval) in the Methods section. If investiga-tors have potential conflicts of interest, these must bedisclosed to study participants, and a statement shouldbe included in the Methods section to indicate thatsuch disclosure was made.

When submitting a quality improvement report,authors should indicate whether the plan for thequality improvement activity has been approved bythe clinical leadership of the organization whose expe-rience is reported.

Whenever possible, any information identifying indi-vidual study participants should be avoided. If identify-ing information is necessary for scientific purposes, thepatient must be shown the manuscript and providewritten informed consent before publication.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY

The online Editorial Policies detail the journal’s con-flict of interest policies and procedures, which gener-ally follow the recommendation of the InternationalCommittee of Medical Journal Editors. The implica-tions of these policies for the submission and consid-eration process are provided in the following.

Potential Author Conflicts

As specified in the full Information for Authors, au-thors should disclose within the manuscript docu-ment all financial relationships that could be viewedas presenting a potential conflict of interest. If thereare relevant nonfinancial associations (personal, pro-fessional, political, institutional, religious, or other)that a reasonable reader would want to know about inrelation to the submitted work, authors should in-clude this information in the text box provided dur-ing the ‘Enter Comments’ step of the manuscriptsubmission process. Authors should disclose informa-tion even when there is a question as to whether arelationship constitutes a conflict.

Authorship of editorials and reviews requires inter-pretation of the literature and therefore is inherentlysubject to bias, thus AJKD requests that authors ofsuch manuscripts not have a significant financialinterest in the subject matter of the manuscript.

Potential Reviewer Conflicts

Authors may provide editors with the names of per-sons they feel should not review their manuscriptbecause of a potential conflict. However, when pos-sible, authors should explain the reason(s) for theirconcerns. Editors will try to avoid selecting reviewerswho have potential conflicts of interest, and will askthose who are invited to review to declare any relevantcompeting interests.

Potential Editor Conflicts

Manuscripts which have an author who is associatedwith the Editor-in-Chief, Deputy Editor, Co-Editors,Statistical Editors, Education Editor, or PathologyEditor are handled by a separate workflow; detailedinformation on the journal’s comprehensive policiesdictating the treatment of such submissions is avail-able in the online Editorial Policies.

AUTHORSHIP

In accordance with International Committee ofMedical Journal Editors recommendations, all au-thors must have a significant role in the manu-script. This means that all 3 of the following condi-tions must be met:

(1) the individual made a substantial contribution toconception and design of the study, to data acqui-sition, or to data analysis and interpretation; and

(2) the individual wrote the article and/or revised thearticle for important intellectual content; and

(3) the individual approved the final version of thesubmitted manuscript.

Note: If the manuscript is subsequently accepted,the individual must also approve the final versionthat is accepted for publication.

All individuals who contributed to the writing ofthe manuscript must be identified either as anauthor or in the acknowledgements section of themanuscript. In particular, if medical writer(s)/ edi-tor(s) have been involved, their role must be explic-itly acknowledged, and their affiliation/source offunding must be listed.

At the editor’s discretion, a description of the contri-bution of each individual listed as an author may berequested by the journal.

MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION

The full Information for Authors provides guidance onmanuscript formatting and style.

With the exception of invited editorials and submis-sions for In a Few Words, all manuscripts are submittedandprocessedusingEditorialManager, anonlinemanu-script handling system accessible at www.editorialman-ager.com/ajkd. Assistance with Editorial Manager isavailable fromtheeditorial office,whomaybecontactedat �1 617-636-0599 or AJKD@tuftsmedicalcenter.org.

Manuscripts are considered for publication if andonly if the article and its key features (1) are not underconsideration elsewhere, (2) have not been pub-lished, and (3) will not appear in print or online priorto appearing in AJKD. This restriction does not applyto abstracts or posters published in connection withscientific meetings; in addition, press reports arisingfrom a conference will not be considered prior publi-cation, provided that authors who discuss their con-ference presentation or poster with reporters are care-ful not to offer more detail about their work than wascontained in the oral or poster presentation.

Submission of a manuscript is understood to indicatethat the authors have complied with all policies asdelineated in the full Information for Authors and theonline Editorial Policies. Individuals who violate thesepolicies are subject to editorial action including but notlimited to (1) disclosure of violations to employers,funding agencies, or other journal offices and/or (2)publication of a retraction, correction, editorial expres-sion of concern, or editorial.

PUBLICATION ON AJKD ELECTRONIC PAGES

Because AJKD receives many more meritorious pa-pers than can be published in the print edition, some

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Case Reports may be accepted for publication solelyon the AJKD website. The initial decision letter sent tothe authors will indicate if the manuscript is beingconsidered as an online Case Report. Articles that arepublished exclusively online will be listed in theprinted table of contents and indexed in MEDLINE.Online Case Reports will incur no page charges orcharges for color figures, but will be subject to thesame copyright laws as the printed edition.

AFTER ACCEPTANCE

Copyright Transfer

The copyright will be assigned exclusively to the Na-tional Kidney Foundation, including the right to repro-duce the article in all forms and media. Permissionrequestsarehandledby thepublisher,Elsevier; informa-tion on how to request permission is available in the ForAuthors section of the AJKD website. Elsevier will notrefuse any reasonable request by authors for permissionto reproduce any of their contributions following publi-cation in AJKD; further information on copyright andpermissions is available in the online Editorial Policies.

PageCharges

AJKD holds all authors responsible for payment ofexcess page charges for published manuscripts.Authors may publish up to 4 printed pages without anypage charges; for each page in excess of the 4 free pages,authors are responsible for paying $75.00 per page orpartialpage.Oneprintedtextpageisapproximatelyequiva-lent to 2.5 double-spaced manuscript pages (12-pointtype),35references,or2 tables/figures.Additional infor-mation is provided in the full Information for Authors.

Color ReproductionCharges

As described in detail in the full Information for Authors,authors must bear all costs connected with printed colorillustrations, with the exception of those appearing inQuizPages.Thefirst colorfigurewill cost$650andeachadditional figure will cost $100. Color reproduction

costs and page charges are billed charges are billedseparately.

Public Access andSponsoredArticles

AJKD complies with the National Institutes of Health(NIH) Public Access Policy; further information isavailable in the online Editorial Policies.

Authors may sponsor nonsubscriber access to theirarticles for a fee; additional details are available in theonline Editorial Policies.

Proofreading

Corresponding authors are provided with proofs viae-mail. Corrections of production errors or importantchanges in data are allowed, but authors will becharged for excessive alterations to proofs. Correc-tions must be returned to Elsevier within 48 hours.

Reprints

Reprints of articles can be ordered before or afterpublication. Elsevier will send information on order-ing reprints to authors by e-mail. Individuals wishingto obtain a reprint of an article that appears in AJKDcan do so by contacting the corresponding author.

EDITORIAL OFFICE

The AJKD Editorial Office is based at Tufts MedicalCenter in Boston, Massachusetts, under the leadershipof Editor-in-Chief Andrew S. Levey, MD, and DeputyEditor Daniel E. Weiner, MD, MS. Editorial office staffcomprise Managing Editor Nijsje Dorman, PhD, Associ-ate Managing Editor Elizabeth Bury, MFA, EditorialAssistant Emily Fay, MA, and Editorial Office AssociateBarbara Saper. Contact information for the editorialoffice follows.

Phone: �1 617-636-0599Fax: �1 617- 636-0598E-mail: AJKD@tuftsmedicalcenter.org

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