The Journal of Sports Medicine and Therapy (JSMT) is dedicated to upholding the highest ethical standards in sports medicine research and ensuring the confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts. Editors, reviewers, and authors must adhere to ethical guidelines that promote integrity, transparency, and patient confidentiality in sports medicine and rehabilitation research.

Confidentiality and Ethics

1. Confidentiality in Peer Review and Publication

Editors and reviewers must handle all submitted manuscripts with strict confidentiality to protect authors' intellectual property and research integrity.

• Manuscript Confidentiality: Manuscripts under review must not be shared, discussed, or disclosed outside the editorial and peer review process.
• Reviewer Anonymity: If the journal follows a double-blind peer review system, both author and reviewer identities must remain confidential.
• Unpublished Data Protection: Editors and reviewers must not use or distribute unpublished research findings for personal or professional gain.

2. Ethical Standards in Sports Medicine Research

All research published in JSMT must comply with ethical principles governing clinical studies, rehabilitation trials, and performance-enhancing interventions.

• Human Research Compliance: Studies involving human participants, including athletes, must have prior approval from an institutional review board (IRB) or ethics committee.
• Informed Consent: All clinical studies, injury reports, and case studies must include written informed consent from participants.
• Animal Research Ethics: Studies involving animal models must follow humane treatment protocols and comply with applicable ethical guidelines.

3. Ethical Conduct in Scientific Publishing

JSMT enforces strict ethical publishing policies to ensure transparency, accuracy, and credibility in sports medicine research.

• Plagiarism and Duplicate Submission: Manuscripts are screened for plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and duplicate publication.
• Authorship Transparency: All listed authors must have made significant contributions to the research and manuscript preparation.
• Data Integrity: Research data, figures, and clinical results must be presented accurately, without falsification or selective reporting.

4. Managing Conflicts of Interest

Editors, reviewers, and authors must disclose any conflicts of interest that could influence research evaluation or editorial decisions.

• Editorial Independence: Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where they have a personal, professional, or financial conflict of interest.
• Author and Reviewer Disclosure: All potential conflicts, including funding sources, institutional affiliations, and industry relationships, must be disclosed.
• Funding Transparency: Research supported by sports organizations, rehabilitation centers, or pharmaceutical companies must fully disclose funding sources.

5. Corrections and Retractions

JSMT is committed to maintaining the scientific record by addressing errors and ethical concerns transparently.

• Errata and Corrections: Minor errors that do not affect research validity will be corrected through an erratum.
• Article Retractions: Research misconduct, ethical violations, or significant errors may lead to article retractions with a formal statement.
• Expression of Concern: If an ethical concern is under investigation, an expression of concern may be published to alert readers.

6. Transparency and Ethical Accountability

JSMT ensures that its editorial policies and ethical guidelines are publicly accessible, consistently enforced, and aligned with global sports medicine research standards.

• Ethical Complaints: Any ethical concerns raised by authors, reviewers, or readers will be investigated in accordance with COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines.
• Editorial Integrity: Editorial decisions are made solely based on scientific quality, ethical compliance, and relevance to sports medicine and rehabilitation.
• Diversity and Inclusivity: JSMT promotes diversity in authorship, peer review selection, and editorial board representation.

By submitting to the JSMT, authors, reviewers, and editors agree to adhere to these confidentiality and ethical guidelines. For any ethical concerns or clarifications, please contact the editorial office.