Editorial Policy

Mission and Scope

The Journal of Scientific Advances in Dentistry (JSAD) is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal committed to publishing original, high-quality research that advances knowledge and practice in all disciplines of dentistry and oral health sciences. Our mission is to:

• Promote evidence-based practice through rigorous, transparent research dissemination

• Provide a global platform for dental researchers, clinicians, and educators

• Foster international collaboration and knowledge exchange

• Maintain the highest standards of scientific integrity and ethical conduct

Editorial Independence and Structure

Editorial Governance

The journal operates under the editorial authority of the Editor-in-Chief, supported by the Editorial Board and Associate Editors. The Editor-in-Chief holds sole responsibility for decisions on manuscript acceptance or rejection and acts independently of the publisher in these determinations.

Current Editorial Team:

• Editor-in-Chief: Dr. Varun Kumar, Professor of Prosthodontics, Seema Dental College and Hospital, Rishikesh

• Associate Editors: Specialists from various dental disciplines providing editorial guidance and manuscript handling

• Editorial Board: Established experts from Indian and international institutions ensuring peer review quality

• International Editorial Board: Experts from global dental centers providing international perspective

Conflict of Interest Policies

Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board Members:

• Recuse themselves from editorial decisions involving manuscripts from their own institution

• Declare financial, professional, or personal relationships that could influence editorial judgment

• Do not handle manuscripts by close colleagues or collaborators

• Hold no financial interest in the journal or publisher

Publisher Relationship:

• The Editor-in-Chief maintains independence from commercial interests

• All acceptance/rejection decisions are based solely on scientific merit, originality, and adherence to ethical standards

• The publisher does not influence editorial decisions

Peer Review Policy

Review Model

JSAD employs double-blind peer review as its standard model. In double-blind review, both authors and reviewers remain anonymous to each other, ensuring maximum objectivity and fairness in the evaluation process.

How Double-Blind Review Works:

• Author identities are removed from manuscripts before reviewer assignment

• All institutional affiliations and identifying information are concealed from reviewers

• Reviewer identities remain confidential to authors

• This protects against reviewer bias based on author reputation, institution prestige, or prior relationships

Reviewer Selection Criteria

Reviewers are selected based on:

• Recognized expertise in the manuscript's subject matter

• Publication record in peer-reviewed journals

• Absence of conflict of interest with the authors

• Commitment to timely, thorough review

Authors may suggest reviewers and request exclusion of specific individuals; the Editorial Board considers these requests but maintains final selection authority.

Review Process

Initial Assessment: The Editorial Office checks format compliance and ensures the manuscript falls within journal scope. Desk rejection occurs for obviously unsuitable submissions within 2 weeks.

Assignment and Review: Suitable manuscripts are assigned to the Editor-in-Chief or an Associate Editor, who selects two peer reviewers. Reviewers are asked to complete their review within 4 weeks. Manuscripts are prepared for double-blind review by removing all author and institutional identifiers.

Reviewer Evaluation: Reviewers assess:

• Scientific merit and novelty

• Methodological soundness

• Clarity of presentation

• Appropriate scope for the journal

• Ethical compliance

• Statistical accuracy (for quantitative studies)

Editorial Decision: The handling editor synthesizes reviewer comments and makes a recommendation to the Editor-in-Chief, who issues a final decision.

Turnaround Time: Authors can expect initial feedback within 4–8 weeks of submission.

Reviewer Accountability

Reviewers are expected to:

• Evaluate manuscripts objectively based on scientific content

• Provide constructive, respectful feedback

• Disclose any conflicts of interest

• Maintain manuscript confidentiality

• Complete reviews in the agreed timeframe

• Avoid using unpublished manuscript information for personal advantage

• Respect the anonymity of the double-blind review process

Ethical Standards and Compliance

Research Ethics

Human Subjects Research:

• All research involving human subjects must have approval from an institutional review board (IRB), ethics committee, or equivalent body

• Informed written consent must be obtained from participants (waiver requires documented ethical approval)

• Authors must confirm compliance in the Methods section

Animal Research:

• Studies using animals must comply with ARRIVE (Animal Research: Reporting of In Vivo Experiments) guidelines

• Institutional approval for animal care and use is mandatory

• Pain and distress minimization must be demonstrated

Clinical Trials:

• Randomized controlled trials should be registered in ClinicalTrials.gov or equivalent registry prior to enrollment

• Trial registration numbers must be provided in the manuscript

Data Integrity and Misconduct

JSAD is committed to research integrity and does not tolerate:

• Fabrication: Making up data

• Falsification: Manipulating results or selectively reporting findings

• Plagiarism: Presenting others' work as one's own without attribution

• Duplicate publication: Submitting the same data to multiple journals

• Undisclosed authorship disputes: Disagreements about who should be credited as an author

• Self-plagiarism: Reproducing significant portions of one's own previously published work

Investigation Protocol: Upon suspicion of misconduct, the Editor-in-Chief will:

1. Request clarification from the corresponding author

2. Contact the author's institution if initial response is unsatisfactory

3. Initiate a formal investigation if warranted

4. Document findings and corrective actions

5. Issue retractions, corrections, or editorial notes as appropriate

Authorship and Contributorship

Author Qualifications:

• Substantial contributions to conception or design, or acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data

• Drafting or critical revision of intellectual content

• Final approval of the published version

• Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work

Author Order:

• Determined by the authors; first author typically made the most substantial contribution

• Changes to author order after submission require written justification and approval from all authors

Contributorship Statement:

• Authors should specify each author's contribution using CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) where possible

• All individuals who contributed but do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged with their specific contribution noted

Funding and Conflict of Interest Disclosure

• All sources of funding (grants, equipment, drugs, financial support) must be declared

• Financial relationships (consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership, patent applications) must be disclosed

• Personal relationships or professional rivalries that could bias the work should be declared

• Even perceived conflicts should be disclosed; transparency is preferred

• If no conflicts exist, authors should state this explicitly

Patient Confidentiality and Anonymity

• All identifying information must be removed from clinical images and case descriptions

• Patient initials or identification numbers must not appear in manuscripts

• Photos of patients (including clinical intraoral images) require explicit written informed consent

• Case reports should be sufficiently de-identified to protect patient privacy

Publication Ethics Compliance

JSAD adheres to the guidelines set forth by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and follows best practices for responsible research communication, including:

• Clear disclosure of funding and conflicts of interest

• Transparent reporting of methods and results

• Appropriate statistical analysis and presentation

• Acknowledgment of limitations

• Responsible discussion of findings

• Avoidance of embargoed results in press releases

Corrections and Retractions

Corrections

Minor errors (typos, calculation mistakes, figure mislabeling) that do not affect the scientific validity of the work may be corrected via a published Correction notice that links to the original article. Authors or readers may report these errors; the Editor-in-Chief reviews and determines appropriateness.

Retractions

Articles may be retracted if:

• The findings have been shown to be unreliable due to scientific misconduct or honest error

• The work was published elsewhere simultaneously or previously

• The work violates ethical standards

• Authorship disputes cannot be resolved

• The authors or institution formally request retraction

Retracted articles remain part of the permanent record, clearly marked as retracted, with an explanation of the reason for retraction.

Expression of Concern

If misconduct is suspected but investigation is ongoing, an "Expression of Concern" may be published to alert readers while details are clarified.

Peer Review Standards and Training

Reviewer Guidelines

Reviewers receive detailed instructions including:

• Evaluation criteria for each manuscript type

• Guidance on constructive criticism

• Instructions for maintaining confidentiality and anonymity

• Conflict of interest protocols

• Timelines and contact information for questions

Editor Training

Editors receive orientation on:

• Journal policy and scope

• Ethical guidelines and misconduct procedures

• Conflict of interest management

• Handling of appeals and complaints

• Trends in scholarly communication

Appeals and Complaints

Manuscript Appeals

Authors who believe their manuscript was unfairly rejected may appeal to the Editor-in-Chief with:

• A detailed explanation of perceived unfairness

• Point-by-point response to reviewer criticisms

• Any new evidence or information

• Request for reconsideration by different reviewers (if justified)

The Editor-in-Chief will review the appeal and provide a written response within 4 weeks. Decisions are final after this process.

Complaints About Ethical Violations

Complaints regarding author conduct, reviewer misconduct, editorial bias, or other ethical concerns should be directed to:

Editorial Office
Journal of Scientific Advances in Dentistry
Email: ethics@dentistryjournal.org

All complaints are reviewed confidentially and investigated promptly according to COPE guidelines.

Diversity and Inclusion

JSAD is committed to:

• Recruiting editorial board members, reviewers, and authors from diverse geographic regions, institutions, and demographic backgrounds

• Promoting publication of high-quality research regardless of author nationality or language background

• Ensuring peer review processes are free from bias based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or other protected characteristics

• Supporting early-career researchers and those from underrepresented groups in academia

Research Transparency and Reproducibility

Reporting Standards

JSAD requires adherence to appropriate reporting guidelines:

• CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) for randomized controlled trials

• PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) for systematic reviews

• STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) for observational studies

• ARRIVE (Animal Research: Reporting of In Vivo Experiments) for animal studies

• TREND (Transparent Reporting of Evaluations with Nonrandomized Designs) for non-randomized designs

Data Availability

• Authors are encouraged to make research data openly available, either deposited in a public repository or available upon request

• Statement of data availability should be included in the manuscript

• Commercial or ethical restrictions on data sharing should be explained

• Sharing of de-identified raw data is preferred when feasible

Registration of Trials and Protocols

• Clinical trials must be registered in a public registry before patient enrollment

• Protocols for systematic reviews should be pre-registered (PROSPERO)

• Registration information must be cited in the published manuscript

Accessibility and Open Access

JSAD publishes under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) license, ensuring:

• All articles are freely available online to researchers and the public

• No subscription fees or paywalls

• Authors retain copyright

• Content is discoverable through major indexing services

• Research findings are accessible to a global audience

Post-Publication Monitoring

Errata and Corrections

The journal actively monitors published content for errors. Readers are encouraged to contact the Editorial Office with concerns about published work. Corrections are published promptly for verified errors.

Article Metrics and Altmetric Data

JSAD provides readers with article-level metrics including:

• Citation counts

• Download statistics

• Altmetric data reflecting broader online attention

• No impact factor games; metrics are for awareness only, not editorial decisions

Contact and Inquiries

Editorial Office
Journal of Scientific Advances in Dentistry
REVO Publication

Email:

• Editorial inquiries: editor@dentistryjournal.org

Website: dentistryjournal.org

Manuscript Submission: manuscriptflow.net/journal/jsad/login