Journal Policies

All manuscripts submitted for publication are reviewed for originality, methodology, importance, quality, ethical nature, and suitability for the journal. The Editor-in-Chief has full authority over the editorial and scientific content and the timing of publication.

Twenty-Step Evaluation Workflow

1. 1st technical review by the Editorial Secretary.
2. 1st review by the Editor-in-Chief (immediate reject, immediate revision, or further evaluation).
3. 1st review by the Associate Editors.
4. 1st similarity check.
5. 1st evaluation at the weekly Editorial Board Meeting.
6. 2nd review by the Editor-in-Chief (immediate reject, immediate revision, or further evaluation).
7. 2nd detailed technical review by the Editorial Secretary.
8. 1st review by two or more external reviewers.
9. 1st review by a Biostatistician.
10. Revisions (if needed).
11. 2nd similarity recheck.
12. 2nd evaluation by the Associate Editors.
13. 2nd evaluation at the weekly Editorial Board Meeting.
14. 3rd review by the Editor-in-Chief (reject or revision).
15. Assignment of DOI number.
16. Copy editing.
17. Galley proof preparation.
18. Final review by the Editorial Secretary, Associate and Biostatistics Editors, and Editor-in-Chief.
19. 3rd similarity check.
20. Publication.

Technical reviews are usually processed in a few days after submission. Initial evaluation is typically completed in 1 to 3 weeks for most manuscripts. Accepted manuscripts receive a DOI after acceptance and copy editing and are published Ahead of Print before assignment to a scheduled issue.

Plagiarism Detection

Submitted manuscripts are screened with plagiarism software (iThenticate and similar tools) at least two times: during evaluation and after acceptance. High similarity scores can lead to rejection before or after acceptance. Depending on article type and overlap profile, the overall similarity score is generally expected to be below 20%-25%.

Clinical Trials and Reporting Guidelines

The Balkan Medical Journal encourages registration of all clinical trials via ClinicalTrials.gov or one of the WHO ICTRP registries (ICTRP network). Phase 3 trials should be registered at or before first patient enrollment.

The registry name, registration number, and funding source should be provided at the end of the abstract.

For broader reporting guidance, refer to the EQUATOR Network.

The Editorial Board and Publisher adhere to the principles of ICMJE, WAME, CSE, COPE, NLM, WMA, ORI, EASE, and ISMTE.

For all research studies, approval of research protocols by an ethics committee in line with international agreements (Declaration of Helsinki, Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, and International Guiding Principles for Biomedical Research Involving Animals) is required. If ethics approval is missing, manuscripts are handled according to COPE guidance and may be rejected if required approvals cannot be provided.

If a study does not require ethics committee approval, authors must provide either ethics approval or formal documentation from an independent committee indicating approval is not needed under national research integrity rules.

For experimental research on humans, manuscripts must state that informed consent was obtained after detailed explanation of procedures. Informed consent is also required for case reports and clinical images.

All authors should meet ICMJE authorship criteria. Gift, guest, and ghost authorship are not accepted, and suspected misconduct is managed using COPE flowcharts.

Conflict of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose all potential conflicts of interest (family, personal, financial, political, or religious) using the ICMJE Conflict of Interest form and manuscript disclosures. Reviewers or editors with conflicts should decline assignments.

Editorial Board members may submit manuscripts, but cannot participate in any editorial decision stage for their own submissions. Such manuscripts require independent external review.

The journal uses double-blinded peer review: author and reviewer identities are concealed from each other.

Balkan Medical Journal follows ICMJE recommendations and requires a data-sharing statement for randomized clinical trials. Authors must indicate whether deidentified participant data will be shared, what data will be shared, which related documents are available, timing and duration of data availability, and access criteria.

Authors are required to submit a data-sharing statement form and register a data-sharing plan when registering a clinical trial on or after January 1, 2019.

Balkan Medical Journal does not consider preprint publications as prior publication. Authors may present and discuss findings on non-commercial preprint servers (e.g., arXiv, bioRxiv, chemRxiv, medRxiv) before journal submission.

Authors must provide preprint deposition details and DOI during initial submission. Preprints cannot be used as formal references in Balkan Medical Journal publications except as personal communication-style in-text references (using preprint link, DOI, or both).

If the article is published in Balkan Medical Journal, authors are responsible for updating the archived preprint and linking it to the published version. The preprint should be removed upon acceptance to leave only the final version online.

About

This policy defines how generative AI and AI-assisted technologies may be used by authors, reviewers, and editors while maintaining transparency, confidentiality, accountability, and scientific integrity.

For Authors

Authors may use AI tools for tasks such as language clarity, organization, or literature synthesis, but AI cannot replace human scientific judgment. Authors remain fully responsible for accuracy, originality, and integrity.

• Critically verify all AI-generated text, data, and references.
• Do not rely on AI analysis or interpretation without human validation.
• Ensure compliance with privacy, confidentiality, and intellectual property obligations.
• Ensure tool terms do not claim ownership of submitted materials or restrict publication rights.

Disclosure Requirements

Generative AI use in manuscript preparation must be declared at submission, including tool name/version, purpose, and extent of human oversight. Basic grammar/spelling edits do not require disclosure. AI use in study design, analysis, or data generation must be reported in Methods.

Authorship and Images

AI tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. The journal does not permit AI-generated or AI-modified scientific figures/images unless AI use is itself a validated part of the research methodology and fully disclosed.

• Permitted visual adjustments are limited to transparent, standard corrections (e.g., brightness/contrast/color balance).
• Authors must provide raw unaltered data on request for editorial assessment.
• AI-generated artwork, cover images, or graphical abstracts require prior written editorial approval.

For Reviewers and Editors

Peer review and editorial handling are confidential and human-led. Reviewers and editors must not upload manuscripts, reports, or editorial correspondence into public AI tools. Generative AI must not be used for scientific critique, editorial decisions, or manuscript decision correspondence.

The journal may use controlled internal or licensed AI-assisted systems for operational tasks such as reviewer matching, plagiarism checks, and metadata checks under strict human oversight.

Final Responsibility

Human accountability remains central at all times. AI use must not diminish author responsibility, reviewer integrity, or editorial judgment.

Balkan Medical Journal requires proper representation of sex and/or gender as variables across all study types. Authors are expected to use sex (biological factors) and gender (identity/psychosocial/cultural factors) accurately.

• Report participant sex and/or gender wherever possible and explain how these were determined.
• Present sex- and gender-disaggregated data at appropriate points, regardless of whether outcomes are favorable.
• Discuss implications of sex and gender on analyses and interpretation, including study limitations.
• Follow SAGER recommendations for transparent reporting.

For details, see the Sex and Gender Equity in Research (SAGER) guideline.

Change of Authorship

Any post-submission request to add, remove, reorder, or otherwise change authors is subject to Editorial Board approval. Authors must submit the change of authorship form to the Editorial Office.

• Reason for the requested authorship change.
• Signatures of all authors, including any new or removed author.
• If authors are added/removed, a new copyright transfer form signed by all authors after approval.

Withdrawal Policy

Withdrawal is permitted only for compelling and unavoidable reasons. Authors must submit an Article Withdrawal Form, signed by all authors, stating the reason. A manuscript is not considered withdrawn until formal confirmation from the Editorial Office.

If peer review has exceeded six months, authors may request withdrawal. The Editorial Board investigates withdrawal requests. If the reason is acceptable, no penalty applies; if not, the journal may decline submissions from the same author for one year.

Manuscripts may be requested for withdrawal at any review/publication stage, but processing continues until a complete signed form is received and accepted.

Appeal and complaint cases are handled by the Editorial Board within COPE guidance. Appeals must be based on the scientific content of the manuscript.

The final decision on appeals and complaints is made by the Editor-in-Chief. An Ombudsperson or Ethical Editor may be assigned for cases that cannot be resolved internally.

Authors can contact the Editor-in-Chief regarding appeals and complaints via [email protected].

Balkan Medical Journal, published by Trakya University (Edirne, Türkiye), acts as the data controller for personal data collected through this website. We process personal data in accordance with the Turkish Personal Data Protection Law No. 6698 (KVKK) and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This section explains what we collect, why, how long we keep it, and the rights available to you.

What We Collect and Why

• Newsletter subscriptions: your email address, used solely to send new issue alerts, featured articles, and journal news. This is processed on the basis of your explicit consent (the consent checkbox on the subscription form).
• Contact requests: your name, email address, subject, and message, used only to respond to your inquiry.
• Technical data: standard server log information (such as IP address and browser type) generated automatically by our hosting provider for security and operational purposes.

We do not sell or rent personal data, and we do not use it for automated profiling or advertising. Data submitted through the subscription and contact forms is transmitted to our editorial inbox via the third-party form delivery service FormSubmit, which processes the submission only to deliver it to us.

How Long We Keep It

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected. Subscription email addresses are kept until you unsubscribe or withdraw your consent. Contact messages are kept only for the period needed to handle your request and any related follow-up. Data is deleted when it is no longer needed.

Unsubscribing and Withdrawing Consent

You can unsubscribe from journal notifications at any time, at no cost, by emailing [email protected] with the subject “Unsubscribe.” Withdrawing consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before the withdrawal.

Your Rights

Under KVKK (Article 11) and the GDPR, you have the right to request access to your personal data, ask for it to be corrected or erased, object to or restrict its processing, and withdraw consent. To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details below; we will respond within the periods required by applicable law.

Data controller: Balkan Medical Journal, Trakya University Faculty of Medicine, Balkan Yerleşkesi, 22030 Edirne, Türkiye.
Contact: [email protected]