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Original research articles should describe independent research involving the design, conduct and reporting of clinical studies or the sharing of resources from them. Research articles need not be limited to hypothesis-driven research and can include original descriptive studies in which information is brought together for the first time to shed light on current problems or issues within clinical data management. Original research can include many different study designs including experimental, quasi-experimental, econometric, and survey designs as well as qualitative studies, and historiographies. Original research articles should state the research reporting guidelines appropriate for the research design and the research reporting guidelines followed in the manuscript. Research reporting guidelines for a wide variety of research designs are available from the Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research (EQUATOR ) Network.

Research article abstracts should be structured and contain the following sections: introduction, objectives, methods, results and conclusions. The main text of the article should include the following sections: introduction, background, methods, results, discussion and conclusions. Limitations of the research should be clearly stated.

Word count limit: 4000 words 

Structured abstract word count limit: 250 words

Table limit: 4

Figure limit: 6

References: required and unlimited

Original research articles will be peer-reviewed according to a standard review rubric specific to reports of research results .