Print ISSN 0036-3634

INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS

• Scope and editorial policy
• Style and format
• Where to send the papers
• References

The journal's specific objectives are to review historical experiences and stimulate new currents of thought in the field of health issues; to participate in the debate over changes in health conditions and in the organized social response to such conditions; and to serve as a forum where all innovations in the field of public health and related areas can be discussed, with the greatest possible rigor.

It publishes both in English and Spanish full-length original research papers, brief communications, review articles, essays, updates, classics, indicators, health news, book reviews and letters to the editor.

Manuscripts are accepted with the understanding that they represent original material, have not been published previously, are not under consideration for publication elsewhere, and all authors have granted permission for publication.

Full-length typescripts should not exceed 12 to 18 printed pages (about 3 000-4 000 words), including references, and five pages for tables and figures. Short papers must be limited to five pages of text (or about 1000 words) plus two tables and/or figures. (Please see Normas para la publicación de manuscritos).

All manuscripts undergo a preliminary review to determine whether or not they are suitable for publication in Salud Pública de México and also if they comply with its guidelines. All papers deemed suitable are acknowledged and sent out to reviewers. To ensure fairness, each manuscript will be assessed anonymously by two independent reviewers.

Salud Pública de México reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted papers, following the recommendations of its Editorial Board. All accepted manuscripts are subject to copy editing. Manuscripts are not returned to authors. Upon publication of approved papers, reprints are mailed free of charge to the corresponding author.

The front page must only contain the title (not exceeding 90 characters), both in English and Spanish, the full names of the authors, their degrees, academic or professional titles, institutional affiliation, complete addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail, indicating the author designated as correspondent. Please notify the editor of any change of address.

Abstracts should be limited to 150 words, structured as follows: objective, material and methods, results and conclusions. For brief communications limit the number of words to 100. Authors must also provide from three to six key words.

Original papers should be structured as follows: Introduction, Material and methods, Results and Discussion. Essays should be structured in: Introduction, Development of the topic and Conclusions.

Authors are responsible for correct reference citation. References should be numbered consecutively.

Journal references must include:

a) family name and initials of given name(s) of all authors (if more than six, only the first six should be given followed by et al);
b) title of journal articles, with only the initial of the first word in capital (and for names)
c) names of journals abbreviated according to lndex Medicus;
d) year of publication;
e) volume number (in Arabic numerals); and
f) the first and final page numbers of the article.

For books use:

a) names and initials of all authors;
b) full title of the book;
c) edition number;
d) place of publication;
e) publisher;
f) year of publication;
g) number of the volume if more than one, preceded by the word "vol."; and
h) page number(s).

In the case of book chapters, include the first and last page of the chapter, separated by a hyphen. All measurements should be reported in Standard International Units.

Each table should start at top of new page. Give each table a title. Number them in Roman numerals (Table I, Il, etc.), in the same order in which they are mentioned in the text. Figures (graphs, photographs or diagrams) should be numbered using Arabic numerals. (Figure 1, 2, etc.). Print each figure in a separate sheet giving each of them a title. Photographs should be glossy printed.

a) authors' agreement with the order of authorship and contents of the paper (including tables and figures);
b) that the authors transfer to Salud Pública de México copyright upon acceptance of publication;
c) that the paper is an original work that has not been published, either partially or totally, nor submitted for publication by anybody, to other national or foreign journals.

This letter must be signed by each author.

Comité Internacional de Editores de Revistas Médicas. Requisitos uniformes para preparar los manuscritos enviados a revistas biomédicas. Salud Publica Mex 1992; 34(1):94-102.

Llópiz-Avilés M, Gómez-Dantés O. El Sistema Internacional de Unidades. Salud Publica Mex 1988; 30:905-908.