research paper about physical therapy

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• Reliability and Construct Validity of the Japanese Version of the Posture and Postural Ability Scale in Individuals with Cerebral Palsy Yuki KIMURA, Yasuaki KUSUMOTO, Hiroto HAYASHI, Natsui KYUJI, Akiho NASU, Hirotaka GIMA
• Relationship Between the Frequency and Duration of Physical Therapy and Hospitalization-associated Disability Among Geriatric Patients with Heart Failure Yudai KOIWA, Shingo KOYAMA, Yuma TAKAHASHI, Kohei KAWAMURA, Yota KUNIEDA, Hiroyuki ASE, Tomomi MATSUBARA, Tadashi MIYAZAKI, Futoshi WADA, Tomokazu TAKAKURA
• Exercise for People with Parkinson’s Disease: Updates and Future Considerations Jennifer L. MCGINLEY, Yasuhide NAKAYAMA
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Clinical Application of Skeletal Muscle Quantity and Quality Assessment Using Bioelectrical Impedance and Ultrasound Images

Released on J-STAGE: August 20, 2024 | Volume 27 Issue 2 Pages 49-57

Masashi TANIGUCHI

Grading of Balance Function in Subacute Stroke Patients by Using the Berg Balance Scale Together with Latent Rank Theory

Released on J-STAGE: August 20, 2024 | Volume 27 Issue 2 Pages 76-83

Shuntaro TAMURA, Kazuhiro MIYATA, Sota KOBAYASHI, Ren TAKEDA, Hiroki IWAMOTO

Estimation of Vertical Ground Reaction Force during Single-leg Landing Using Two-dimensional Video Images and Pose Estimation Artificial Intelligence

Released on J-STAGE: April 20, 2024 | Volume 27 Issue 1 Pages 35-41

Tomoya ISHIDA, Takumi INO, Yoshiki YAMAKAWA, Naofumi WADA, Yuta KOSHINO, Mina SAMUKAWA, Satoshi KASAHARA, Harukazu TOHYAMA

Exercise for People with Parkinson’s Disease: Updates and Future Considerations

Released on J-STAGE: August 20, 2024 | Volume 27 Issue 2 Pages 67-75

Jennifer L. MCGINLEY, Yasuhide NAKAYAMA

Investigation of Skeletal Muscle Indices Affecting Anaerobic Thresholds after Acute Myocardial Infarction

Released on J-STAGE: August 20, 2024 | Volume 27 Issue 2 Pages 100-107

Yuya UTSUMI, Koji TAKASE, Naoya MURAKAMI, Tokiko NAKAGAWA, Takuya OBAYASHI, Riyo OGURA, Shinobu HOSOKAWA

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Journal of the Japanese Physical Therapy Association

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Theses, Dissertations and Projects - Physical Therapy

Theses/dissertations from 2024 2024.

The Association of Acute Stress and Single Leg Balance , Theodore W. Gehrig III

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

High-Intensity Interval Training and Biological Age , Trevor Lohman

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

The Impact of Intraneural Facilitation Therapy on Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy , Kyan Zhra-Sahba Alnajafi

The Influence of Strength and Mobility on Lumbar Biomechanics During Lifting , Christopher S. Patterson

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Spine Kinematics and Muscle Activities in Non-specific Chronic Low Back Pain Subgroups in Sitting , Mansoor Ahmed Alameri

Relationship between Balance and Physical Activity in Subjects with Non-Specific Chronic Low Back Pain , Muhsen B. Alsufiany

Does self-evaluation and education in students change attitudes and beliefs towards Weight Stigma? , Henry A. Garcia

Effects of Head Motion on Balance in Middle-Aged and Young Adults with Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Ammar E. Hafiz

Effect of Pediatric Ear Infections on Postural Stability , Ohud A. Sabir

Biomechanics and Postural Control Characteristics in Low Back Pain Subgroups During Dynamic Task , Amjad Shallan

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

Effect of Adding Stretching Techniques to Standardized Intervention on Nonspecific Mechanical Neck Pain , Saad S. Alfawaz

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

Effects of Head Motion on Postural Stability in Participants with Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Abdulaziz A. Albalwi

Relationship between Vestibular System, Vision, Anxiety, and Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Ahmad A. Alharbi

The Effects of Frequent Smartphone Use on Children’s Upper Posture and Pulmonary Function , Asma Alonazi

The Effects of Wearing Headscarves on Cervical Spine Proprioception and Range of Motion , Samiah Alqabbani

A Comparison of Neuromuscular Control between Subjects with and without Chronic Ankle Instability , Hatem Jaber

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

Effects of Adjustments to Wheelchair Seat to Back Support Angle on Head, Neck, and Shoulder Postures , Afnan M. Alkhateeb

Effect of Jet Lag on Postural Stability , Faisal M. Al Mubarak

Effect of Heavy Lifting with a Head Strap on the Pelvic Floor across the Menstrual Cycle , Yvonne Biswokarma

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Physical Therapy after Triangular Fibrocartilage Injuries and Ulnar Wrist Pain , Mohamed A. Abdelmegeed

The Effect of Cervical Muscle Fatigue on Postural Stability during Immersion Virtual Reality , Mazen M. Alqahtani

The Effects of a Novel Therapeutic Intervention in Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy Patients , Adel M. Alshahrani

Cross-cultural Adaption and Psychometric Properties Testing of The Arabic Anterior Knee Pain Scale , Abdullah S. Alshehri

Effect of Tai Chi Exercise Combined with Mental Imagery in Improving Balance , Abdulrahman Alsubiheen

Effect of Vestibular Adaptation Exercises on Chronic Motion Sensitivity , Danah Alyahya

Muscle Dynamics as the Result of Whole Body Vibration and Plyometrics , Richard Jeremy Hubbard

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Effect of Monophasic Pulsed Current on the Treatment of Plantar Fasciitis , Abdullah Alotaibi

Screening for Torticollis and Plagiocephaly: The Role of the Pediatrician , Lisa Ann Change-Yee Hwang

Effect of 17β Estradiol & Foot Strike Patterns on Physiological & Biomechanical Changes in Runners , Iman Akef Khowailed

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Inter-rater Reliability of Lumbar Segmental Instability Tests and the Subclassification , Faisal Mohammad Alyazedi

Sleep-wake Cycle Assessment in Type 2 Diabetes and Salivary Melatonin Correlates , Paula Regina Aguiar Cavalcanti

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Elasticity and Force for Knee Flexion during the Menstrual Cycle in Women , Haneul Lee

Effect of Passive Vibration on Skin Blood Flow in Good Glycemic Control and Poor Glycemic Control Type 2 Diabetics , Kanikkai Steni Balan Sackiriyas

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

Co-diagnosis Frequency of Peripheral Vestibular Disorders and Physical Therapy , Summer M. San Lucas

Postural Sway, EEG and EMG Analysis of Hip and Ankle Muscles during Eight Balance Training Tasks , Yuen Yi Florence Tse

Effect of a Single High-Fat Meal and Vitamins on the Circulatory Response to Local Heat in Koreans and Caucasians , JongEun Yim

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

Virtual Reality Gaming as a Tool for Rehabilitation in Physical Therapy , Abel A. Rendon

Theses/Dissertations from 2010 2010

Aerobic Exercise and Bone Turnover in Trained and Untrained Premenopausal Women , Michelle Prowse

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

Effect of 3-Electrode Electrical Stimulation on Current Delivery and Healing in Chronic Wounds , HyeJin Suh

Theses/Dissertations from 2007 2007

Is Electrical Stimulation a Predictive Tool for Autonomic Dysfunction in Males with Diabetes? , Susan Dorothy Rand

Theses/Dissertations from 2005 2005

The Effect of Posterior Versus Anterior Glide Joint Mobilization on External Rotation Range of Motion of Patients with Shoulder Adhesive Capsulitis , Andrea J. Johnson

The Effect of Electrical Stimulation on Blood Flow in Chronic Wounds in Patients with and without Diabetes , Daryl J. Lawson

Isokinetic Knee Strength in Females with Fibromyalgia , Flora F. Shafiee

Difference in Transverse Plane Scapular Position of Professional Baseball Players Relative to Baseball Field Position , James M. Syms

The Effect of Positioning on Pelvic Floor Muscle Activity as Evaluated with Surface Electromyography in Normals , Karen R. Whitter-Brandon

Theses/Dissertations from 2004 2004

Orthopedic Treatment Outcomes and Physical Therapists' Orthopedic Clinical Specialist Status , Karin Granberg

The Effectiveness of a Physical Therapy Intervention for Children with Hypotonia and Flatfeet , Charmayne G. Ross

Theses/Dissertations from 2003 2003

The Role of Health Promotion in Physical Therapy , Brenda L. Rea

Predicting Sacroiliac Syndrome: The Association Between Noninvasive Sacroiliac Joint Tests and Sacroiliac Joint Injections , Lorraine D. Webb

Theses/Dissertations from 2002 2002

Prevalence of various Upper Extremity Disorders in Patients with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome versus Patients without Carpal Tunnel Syndrome , Daniel C. Buda

Effect of Electrode Size, Shape, and Placement on Electrical Current and Subject Comfort During Electrical Stimulation , Bonnie J. Forrester

Patterns of Scholarly Productivity in Physical Therapy Faculty , Ardith L. Williams-Meyer

Theses/Dissertations from 2001 2001

The Effects of Education on Fear-Avoidance Behavior of Subjects with Work-Related Low Back Pain , Marie A. Anger

Toward the Optimal Waveform for Electrical Stimulation , Scott Douglas Bennie

Factors in Predicting the Number of Home Care Physical Visits , Bruce D. Bradley

A Practice Analysis Survey: Defining the Clinical Practice of Primary Care Physical Therapy , Edsen Bermudez Donato

Disability Self-Assessment and Upper Quarter Muscle Balance in Females , Eric Glenn Johnson

Theses/Dissertations from 2000 2000

Comparison of Elderly Non-Fallers and Fallers on Performance Measures of Functional Reach, Sensory Organizations, and Limits of Stability , Harvey W. Wallmann

Theses/Dissertations from 1999 1999

Patient participation in physical therapy goal-setting , Susan M. Baker

Theses/Dissertations from 1998 1998

Prediction of Discharge Destination from Initial Physical Therapy Assessment using the Physical Assessment Key (PAK) , Wendy L. Chung and Kimberly A. Vieten

Does the Oswestry or SF-36 Help a Therapist to Predict Treatment Classification , Amy Crawford and Denese D. Kaufeldt-Soliz

Reliability and Validity of Assessing Student Performance of Psychomotor Skills in Entry Level Physical Therapy Curricula , Nancy Sue Darr

Theses/Dissertations from 1997 1997

Reference Serum Chemistry and Hematological Values for Spinal Cord Injured Patients , Michael S. Laymon and Antone L. Davis II

Discharge Outcomes : An Evaluation of a Functional Index of Physical Assistance , Jan R. Snell

Theses/Dissertations from 1985 1985

A Comparison of Strength Improvement on Free Weights and the Universal Centurion , David J. Davies

Theses/Dissertations from 1984 1984

The effect of dextrose ingestion on cardiovascular endurance , Judith M. Axford

Theses/Dissertations from 1980 1980

The Ingestion of Garlic and its Effect on Cardiovascular Endurance , Thomas G. Blackwelder

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See all region register, peakvisor app, sverdlovsk oblast.

The Sverdlovsk Region territorially covers practically the entire Middle Urals and part of the Northern Urals . The region is usually associated with the Urals in general, and the city of Yekaterinburg, its administrative centre, is called the capital of the Urals . This city is also the centre of the Urals Federal District.

Flora and Fauna

Water resources, landmarks and tourism, konzhakov stone, serebryansky kamen (stone), denezhkin stone & the kvarkush range, kachkanar mountain, the peter the gronsky aka petrogrom rocks, the devil's fortress, the seven brothers rocks, mount bunar, the urals mars, reserves, national and natural parks, picturesque rivers, the revun rapids, zoo nurseries, major cities, yekaterinburg.

In earlier times, the region was part of the Siberian province, then part of the Trans-Ural region of the Perm province of the Russian Empire. As an administrative unit, the Sverdlovsk Region was separated from the Urals Region in 1934 and finally appeared on the maps as an independent entity. It received its name from the regional centre – the city of Sverdlovsk, which is actually Yekaterinburg, but the city was renamed in the Soviet times to commemorate the revolutionary Yakov Sverdlov. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the city was given back its historical name – Yekaterinburg, but the region was not renamed, thus the discrepancy. The same story happened with Saint Petersburg and Leningradskaya Region.

The Sverdlovsk Region borders the Komi Republic and the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region in the north, the Tyumen Region in the east, the Kurgan and Chelyabinsk Regions in the south, the Republic of Bashkortostan and the Perm Territory in the west.

There is a conditional border between Europe and Asia running from north to south through the whole Sverdlovsk Region. The area of the region is 194 307 sq. km., the length from north to south is 660 km, the distance between the western and eastern extremes is about 560 km. The population of the region is 4.3 million people. There are 47 cities in the Sverdlovsk Region.

The relief of the region is diverse. The western part is mountainous, whereas the central and eastern parts are plain. The Main Urals Range extends from north to south. The highest point in the Sverdlovsk Region is Konzhakov Stone (1,569 m).

The vegetation is dominated by coniferous and mixed forests, mainly birch, pine, spruce, less often aspen and cedar, while in the extreme south-east there are some forest-steppes. Forests cover about 82.3% of the territory. Mountain slopes up to 600 m high are covered with dark coniferous northern taiga forests (spruce, fir, cedar). The mountains, passes, plateaus starting from the height of 800 m and higher are covered with rocky tundra.

The fauna of the Sverdlovsk Region is filled with typical forest representatives. There are 66 species of mammals, 6 species of reptiles, 9 species of amphibians, 228 species of birds, and 48 species of fish.

The watershed between the basins of the main tributaries of Russia's two largest rivers, the Irtysh and the Kama, runs along the ridges of the Ural Mountains and the eastern foothills in the south of the Sverdlovsk Region. The region's river network includes 18,414 rivers with a total length of more than 68,000 km. They are characterized by mixed feeding (by ground and meltwater, and atmospheric precipitation) with a predominance of snow (snow feeding is about 85-90% in the southern areas of the region and about 60-65% in the Ural Mountains ). The rivers freeze in late October-November and open up in April. The main river in the Irtysh basin is the Tobol with its tributaries of the first, second and third-order: the Iset, Tavda, and Tura (tributaries of the Tobol); the Nitsa, Pyshma, Tagil (tributaries of the Tura); the Lozva, Sosva, and Pelym (tributaries of the Tavda). The main rivers in the Kama basin are the Chusovaya River (a tributary of the Kama River) and its tributary – the Sylva River, and the Ufa River (a tributary of the Belaya River).

Swamps and marshlands occupy about 10.53% of the total area of the region (20461 sq. km.). The largest marshes are located in the north-east, in the Tavda river basin.

The Sverdlovsk Region has more than 5,850 lakes and artificial water bodies with the total area of about 1.35 thousand sq.km., including about 2000 lakes with the area of more than 0.01 sq.km, as well as a number of even smaller lakes (according to the Institute of Lake Science of the Russian Academy of Sciences).

The largest lakes in the region are the Pelymsky Tuman (its area is 65 sq.km) and the Vagilskiy Tuman (half the size of its bigger brother, it is 31.2 sq.km.). The largest artificial lakes are the Beloyarskoye reservoir on the Pyshma River and the Volchikhinskoye reservoir on the Chusovaya River. The Sverdlovsk Region takes the last place by the total area of lakes and artificial reservoirs, as well as by lakes among the regions of the Ural Federal District. The size and number of lakes, artificial reservoirs, swamps and wetlands is unstable and tends to change depending on natural factors such as water regime, climatic phenomena, swamping, etc. and anthropogenic factors, viz. excessive drainage or, conversely, watering of territories, regulation of river flows, etc.

Underground water reservoirs are also powerful and aplenty in the Sverdlovsk region which ranks the third in terms of the volume of forecasted groundwater resources (after the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area and the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area).

The climate of this area is moderately continental. The Ural Mountains partially protect the region from cyclones and anticyclones. Strong winds and snowstorms are quite rare. As we move away from the Main Ural Mountain Range and towards the south of the region, the air temperature increases and the amount of annual precipitation decreases. But on the whole, despite the large territory of the region, climatic conditions in all parts are quite similar. Seasons are well-pronounced, and precipitation is evenly distributed throughout the calendar year. Summer is warm, characterized by moderately hot weather without any extremes. The warmest month is July, with an average daily temperature of +21 to +26°C (+70 to +79 F), and in the mountains, it is only +14 to +16°C (+57 to +61 F). If you get very warm and dry air from Kazakhstan and Central Asia at this time of year, the daytime temperature can reach +35 to +40 ° C (+95 to +104 F), whereas the invasion of the Arctic air can bring some frosts at night frosts. Winter is freezing cold with dense snow cover. January is the coldest month of the year, with average daily temperatures ranging from -14 to -20°C (+7 to -4 F). However, during the Arctic cold air onslaughts, there are severe frosts down to -48 to -50 °C (-54 to -58 F), and in the northern parts of the region down to -55 °C (-67F). Thaws are also possible when the day temperature rises to +8°C (+46 F) in winter, but this is very rare.

The Sverdlovsk Region is one of the largest industrial centres in the country due to extensive mining. In terms of industrial output, it ranks second in Russia after the Moscow Region. There are rich deposits of bauxite, gold, various minerals, platinum and asbestos. The territory is blessed with many deposits of precious and semiprecious stones, they are mainly located in the so-called ‘gem strip’ running on the eastern slopes of the Ural Mountains .

There are many interesting places in the Sverdlovsk Region that attract travellers. In 2017, it was included in the top 10 most popular tourist regions of Russia. This area is especially suitable for aficionados of active rest.

Beautiful and majestic mountains attract herds of tourists in summer and winter alike. You can go hiking, skiing or drive snowmobiles here. The highest of the mountains are in the north of the Sverdlovsk region together with the main peak Konzhakov Stone (1,569 m). Tourists sometimes call the mountain Konzhak. The mountain is 450 km north of the city of Yekaterinburg. There is no cellular communication, but you can spend the night in a tent. Every year on the first Saturday of July, on the slopes of this mountain massif there is held an International Mountain Marathon Konzhak. It is a challenging 42-km distance running along the mountain trails and rock rivers of Konzhakov Stone , over the rivers and snows fields. The run goes from the river Konzhakovka to the top of the mountain and back.

Next to Konzhakov Stone , in its eastern spur, there is Serebryansky Kamen Mountain (also called Serebryanka). The mountain is almost 300 m lower, but it is as frequently visited as Konzhak. The top of the mountain is crowned with huge and steep rock bastions. Its spurs are like the spine of a dragon. In winter, the mountain is often compared to the kingdom of the Snow Queen, so everything here is majestic and impregnable (rocks, ice and snow). On the slope of the mountain in the olden days there used to be a rescue base, the only remnant of that is a sauna. If necessary, you can stay there for a sleepover (it accommodates 3-4 people). The nearest connection with the Ministry of Emergency Situations is at the tourist base Serebryansky Kamen at the intersection of the highway Karpinsk-Kytlym with the river Serebryanka. Here you can spend the night, visit the bathhouse, there is a parking lot as well.

Other high mountain ranges include the Main Urals Range , the nearby Denezhkin Stone Range and the Kvarkush Range. Between the Main Ural Ridge and Denezhkin Stone Mountain there is the Zvezda camping site. There are also no cellular communications or regular transport links in the area. On the Kvarkush Range you can visit the Zhigalan Falls, a five-stage waterfall which is considered one of the most beautiful waterfalls in the Urals . By the end of autumn, the waterfall freezes, which attracts fans of ice climbing.

In the central and southern parts of the region, the mountains are low but easily accessible and no less beautiful. Among them are Mounts Kachkanar , Volchikha , Shunut , Sinyaya (Blue) , Azov-Mountain , and the Merry Mountains.

Kachkanar mountain is 270 km away from Yekaterinburg by the Serov road. It is a ridge with two peaks – Great Kachkanar (878 m) and Little Kachkanar (866 m). It is better to start climbing from the top of Mt Malaya. There was founded a monastery called Shad Tchup Ling (Place of practice and realization) on the northeast spur of this mountain in 1995 by Lama Sanje Tenzin Dokshitom (Mikhail Sannikov). When you come up to the beginning of the log path to the monastery, you are invited to take a brick with you up to the monastery so that your path would cease to be some common walking, but will gain the meaning. The bricks are needed for the construction of the site which is still underway today. There are several monks living on the mountain at any time of year. The guests are welcomed by the Awakening stupa. A stupa is a Buddhist commemorative monument usually housing sacred relics associated with the Buddha or other saintly persons. Another stupa is hidden in the rocks from prying eyes. Anyone can come to the monastery as a guest with an overnight stay or as a volunteer worker. From the monastery, the trail continues to Camel Rock, from where you can enjoy views of the town of Kachkanar and the huge steps of the Kachkanar Mining and Processing quarry (EVRAZ KGOK, formerly called KGOK Vanadiy, an iron ore producer). A small lake formed by flooding a quarry is located 500 m from the beginning of the trail to the monastery. From here, bypassing the monastery, there is another road to Camel Rock.

If you are pressed for time, within the city limits of Yekaterinburg there are beautiful rocks with bizarre forms, the most famous of them are the rocks of Peter Gronsky (aka Petrogrom or Grony), the Devil's Fortress, and the Seven Brothers. Tourists admire their beautiful views, and climbers train here to conquer the rocks of varying difficulty.

The rocks of Peter the Gronsky are stone remains on top of the Upper Iset granite massif (370 m high). The height of the rocks themselves is 15 m. They have several names. On the maps, they are called the rocks of Peter the Gronsky . In the Soviet times, it was believed that revolutionary workers headed by Peter Gronsky hid their weapons here and held mausoleums. However, local historians believe that Peter Gronsky, who lived at the Iset railway station in those years, could not participate in the revolutionary events, because he was still very young. Scientists call the rocks Petrogrom, in honour of Peter the Thunderer. They say that lightning strikes here very often. And among the tourists, there's a simpler name – Grony aka Thunderstorms. According to archaeological excavations, in ancient times there was a metallurgical production here, the ore was supplied here from the Sugra mine. Nowadays, it is a popular weekend route oftentimes taken with children at any time of year. From the rocks, there is a picturesque view of Lake Iset. The Petrogrom Rocks are located to the north-west of Yekaterinburg. You can get to them by public transport: by train to Nizhny Tagil, go 479 km to the station. The trail to the rocks starts on the right of the stop. A visit to the Petrogrom Rocks can be combined with a trip to the rocks of the Devil's Fortress and Iset Lake.

The Devil's Fortress is both a mountain (the absolute height is 347 m) and a rocky massif on its top. The rocks are a mighty granite ridge with a height of 20 m having a folded structure. As for the name, one version of the place was "damned or devilish" because if you look at such an erratic heap of granite slabs them seem so unnatural as if laid out by an evil force. In the process of excavations, there were found traces of ancient people staying here. Probably the first locals made sacrifices here to appease the gods. Mass visitation to the Devil's Fortress began at the end of 19th century after the Ural railway was opened. In 1980-1985, this place was closed to visitors. During this time the territory was cleared, garbage was taken out and the area was equipped with a climbing wall, one of the first in the USSR. For climbers, the northern side of the remains is of the greatest interest. The southern side is more gentle and goes down as if in steps to the valley of the Semipalatka river, a tributary of the Iset River. A wooden staircase leads to the very top of the Devil's Fortress. You can visit the Devil's Fortress by taking a train from Yekaterinburg to Iset station, the rocks are 6 km from this station.

The Seven Brothers Rocks, one of the most popular rock idols in the Middle Urals , are the highest rocks in the vicinity of Yekaterinburg. They are located at the top of Mount Semibratskaya (422 m) and belong to the Upper Iset granite massif. The height of the idols is up to 32 m. In the upper part, the mount is dividing into separate stone columns of folded structure, reminiscent of giants or brothers, from which the name comes. Actually, there are more than seven ‘brothers’, and next to them there is a remnant called ‘a sister’. There are many legends associated with the name of the rocks, and most of them imply that the brothers turned into stone. No traces of ancient people were found here. It could be connected with the prohibition for ordinary people to visit this place because it was believed that gods lived there. Nowadays there are a lot of tourists here, climbers have the training and sometimes competitions. Nearby (1.5 km) are the Rocks of Three Sisters. There are indeed three stone idols of no more than 20 m high. It is easy to climb to the south side. On the north side, there is an interesting big grotto. You can get to the Seven Brothers from the town of Verkh-Neyvinsk (7 km) and to the village itself take a train from Yekaterinburg.

Mount Bunar (612 m), which is the highest in the vicinity of Verkh-Neyvinsk and Novouralsk, has the Bunar idols. There are no idols on the top itself, they are scattered all over the slopes of Mount Bunar . It is not easy to find them among the dense taiga filled with windbreak. There is a belief that there are 999 idols in these forests. You climb one of them, you open your eyes to the next one. By the way, real idols which were worshipped by the peoples who lived here in ancient times must remain hidden from curious eyes. Most of the tourists manage to find two rock sculptures which are called very dramatically: the First and the Second. Not far from Mount Bunar , there are mineral deposits. To the south of Mount Bunar on the Kamenka River, there is one of the few deposits of green garnet in the Urals - a diamond-like demantoid. In the east, in the environs of the former mountain, there is now the Zaplotny Stone quarry where they mine tourmalines, chlorites, sphenes, and radiated zeolite. It is better to start the trip to Mount Bunar from Belorechka settlement or from the railway station Neivo-Rudyanskaya.

The relief of the Urals Mountains made it possible to build many ski centres in the Sverdlovsk Oblast. The largest of them are located on Belaya, Volchikha, and Yezhovaya mountains. In the city of Nizhny Tagil on Mount Dolganaya there is a ski jump complex where international competitions are held.

In the Sverdlovsk Region, you can see ethereal landscapes which the locals call the Urals Mars. Unusual beautiful landscapes reminiscent of Martian and sometimes lunar ones appeared on the place of former clay quarries. The official name of this place is Poldnevoy Section of the Troitsko-Baynovsky refractory clay deposit located south of the town of Bogdanovich, near the Poldnevoy village. The deposit is 20 km long and has an area of about 75 sq.km. It is one of the largest reserves in the Middle Urals. The clays have different colouring ranging from white and light grey to black with admixtures of iron oxides and humus matter. Due to this, the local clay quarries differ considerably in colour from each other. Clay hills have the appearance of ridges of different sizes. There are several lakes with water of orange and brown-red colour which is explained by the presence of pyrite in water. Bathing in such water is dangerous. Walking in this area can be likened to walking on another planet.

Thanks to karst phenomena, there are many caves, gaps, sinks, arches and other karst formations in the mountains. However, the exploration of grottoes and caves continues to this day and even geographers make very tentative guesses about their numbers. There are about 80 caves in the Sverdlovsk Region that are more than 50 meters long and deeper than two meters.

The longest caves are the Severnaya Cave (2,250 m long), the Bolshaya Yurtishenskaya Cave (930 m long), the Tayozhnaya Cave (850 m long), the Smolinskaya Cave (630 m long), and the Druzhba Cave (500 m long).

The deepest caves are the Sadykovskaya (88 m), the Tayozhnaya (64 m), the Saranskaya (49 m), the Vetrovaya (45 m), and the Volkovskaya Mine (44 m).

The most popular caves in the Sverdlovsk Region are the Smolinskaya, Druzhba, and the Arakayevskie caves. The Smolinskaya Cave is located two kilometres from the village of Beklenishcheva in the Sukholozhskoye District. The Druzhba Cave is located near the Iset River and the Revun rapids. The Arakayevskie caves can be found near the village of Arakayevo in the Deer Streams Nature Park.

The Sverdlovsk region has many interesting places to visit:

• Nature reserves Denezhkin Stone , Visimsky
• Nature parks Deer Streams , Chusovaya River, Bazhov’s Places;
• National Park Pripyshminskie Pinewoods
• Nature and mineralogical reserve Rezhevskaya

Fans of water trips will be interested in rafting along the picturesque rivers Chusovaya, Sosva, Lozva, Serga, Iset, Rezh, Kakva, Ivdel, Tagil, Ufa, Neiva, Pyshma, Shishim, Serebryanka, Sulem, Ay, and Bardym. The most stunning of them is the Chusovaya River. On the banks of many rivers, there are plenty of beautiful rocks of various shapes and sizes.

For the lovers of extreme pleasures, the Revun rapids on the Iset River are the biggest temptation. The Iset River is a calm, not a mountain river but for 500 m it turns into a bubbling stream and shows a duel of water and stone. The complexity category of the rapids varies depending on the season and water level in the river from the 2nd to the 5th at the end of March or in April during the flood. It is often possible to watch rafters' competitions or training sessions in canoes, catamarans, kayaks on the Revun rapids. Beklenishchevskie rocks (20-30 m high) surrounding the rapids lure all types of climbers, experienced and beginners alike. In 1989, the last All-Union Tourist Con was held here. In the vicinity of Revun, just 1.5 km away, there is the Smolinskaya cave (500 km downstream, on the opposite bank and 800 m deep into the forest to be exact), which can be visited after rafting.

The following zoo nurseries are located in the Sverdlovsk Region:

• Maral farm Visimskiye Zori. Marals are large semi-wild deer brought here from the Altai. It is situated in Visim settlement, 180 km from Yekaterinburg.
• Zoo in Pridannikovo village, 200 km from Yekaterinburg.
• Irbit ostrich farm in the town of Irbit, 205 km from Yekaterinburg.
• The equestrian sports club Kapriol which keeps horses, reindeer, and white camel. You can order a tour, or go for a walk to the Seven Brothers Rocks. The club teaches horseback riding. It is located in Verkh-Neyvinsky, 70 km from Yekaterinburg.
• Deer reserve UZGA. It is situated not far from Itkul, near Sysertskoye Lake, 116 km from Yekaterinburg.
• Kholzan bird of prey nursery near the village of Kashino, 46 km from Yekaterinburg.

Those who want food for thought and a calmer but no less interesting experience should go to the major cities of the Sverdlovsk region where you can visit their temples and monasteries, museums, and get acquainted with local culture and traditions.

The main pearl among the cities of the Sverdlovsk region is its capital city – Yekaterinburg. You can get to Yekaterinburg in one of the following ways:

• Fly by plane to Koltsovo Airport.
• Take a train to the station of Yekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk-Sortirovochnaya station).

You can take a bus, suburban train or a taxi to other towns of the region from Yekaterinburg.

By order of Peter the Great, the city of Yekaterinburg, also spelt as Ekaterinburg, was originally established in the Urals as an industrial and trade centre. In 1723, the Yekaterinburg plant was built on the Iset River. This year is also considered the birthday of the city. Its founders are Vasily Tatishchev and Georg Wilhelm de Gennin. The city received its name in honour of the wife of Peter I, the future Empress Catherine I. The city has a favourable geographical location. Yekaterinburg is located on the eastern slope of the Ural Mountains , in the Middle Urals. The Ural Mountains in this place are low, they are basically hills, which provides favourable conditions for the construction of railways and large roads here. The Koltsovo International Airport is also located here. Now Yekaterinburg is one of the largest transport and logistics hubs. The city has many shopping and office centres. Yekaterinburg is the most compact city with a population of one million people in Russia. Its area is 490 sq. km. In terms of population (about 1.5 million people) it is the fourth city in Russia after Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Novosibirsk. The main river of the city is the Iset. There are also ponds within the city limits: the Urban, the Upper Iset, and the Lower Iset ponds. All the tributaries of the Iset in the city except the Patrushikha River were hidden underground in the past years. Yekaterinburg is the only city in the Urals with metro, and for a long time, it was considered the shortest in the world.

It is convenient to start a brief acquaintance with the history of the capital of the Urals with the Plotinka - the dam of the city pond that gave rise to the plant and the city of Yekaterinburg itself. A stone's throw from it, there is a monument to the founders of the city (Tatishchev and de Gennin), a chapel in honour of Catherine I and a fountain called the Stone Flower. In addition to the dam and the pond, you can visit the exhibition of large-size equipment of Ural factories in the open air. A walk along the embankment of the city pond and along the Iset River in the centre of the city will open views of the old buildings preserved here. In summer, you can take a boat ride on the pond.

Another attraction is the Temple on Blood built on the site of the Ipatyev’s house. It is believed that during the Civil War in 1918 in the basement of Ipatyev's house the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and his family were executed. The cathedral was built in the Russian-Byzantine style and divided into the Lower and Upper Temples. There are a firing room and a small museum in the tomb chapel of the Lower Temple.

Across the road from the Temple on Blood, on Voznesenskaya Hill, there is a palace and a park which is sometimes called the Yekaterinburg Acropolis. The estate of the Ural Kharitonov-Rastorguyev dynasty includes a park with an artificial pond and a gazebo-rotunda on it.

To get acquainted with the panorama of the city, it is worth visiting the observation deck of the skyscraper Vysotsky (the 52nd floor, height of the platform 186 m). There is also an observation deck in the business centre of Antey.

There are many theatres in Yekaterinburg, as well as a philharmonic, circus, zoo, and an aqua park. Museums are plenty as well, there is the Museum of History of Yekaterinburg, Museum of Ural History and Archaeology, Museum of Nature, Museum of Radio, Museum of Fine Arts. In addition, the museum complex is located in the Literary Quarter. In the Sverdlovsk Regional Museum of Local Lore, you can see the world's oldest wooden sculpture – the Big Shigir Idol, its age according to the latest estimates is 11.6 thousand years. The most modern museum in Yekaterinburg is Boris Yeltsin’s Museum located in Yeltsin centre. Yeltsin Center itself has become a large public, cultural and educational centre, which hosts many bright, interesting events in the city.

Among the natural sights within the city limits the most interesting are the rocks of Shartash stone tents and lake Shartash, and the Baran peninsula on Upper Iset pond.

Explore Sverdlovsk Oblast with the PeakVisor 3D Map and identify its summits .

PeakVisor Hiking Maps

Be a superhero of outdoor navigation with state-of-the-art 3D maps and mountain identification in the palm of your hand!

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Is PTJ the Right Journal for Your Work?

Article types and manuscript preparation.

• Publishing Model and Peer Review Process

When You’re Ready to Submit

PTJ publishes manuscripts from across the globe. PTJ gives priority to:

• Articles that address important questions that will have an impact on physical therapy and rehabilitation.
• Original research with strong methods and research designs that fit the questions being asked.
• Articles that can help physical therapists and other rehabilitation professionals improve decision making in rehabilitation practice, policy, education, or research.
• Articles that will facilitate the translation and implementation of evidence into practice and policy.

PTJ  reviews and considers a manuscript for exclusive publication with the understanding that the manuscript, or any substantial portion of the manuscript (as judged by the Editor in Chief), has not been published previously and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, whether in print or electronic form. This policy does not usually preclude consideration of (1) a manuscript that has been rejected by another journal or (2) a complete report that follows publication of a preliminary report or pilot study. Papers presented at a scientific meeting usually will not be considered to constitute prior publication, but such presentations should not be amplified by additional data or copies of tables and illustrations. 

Types of articles that PTJ will NOT publish:

• Studies in which participants did not give informed consent.
• Studies that lack necessary approval by or waiver from a research ethics committee/institutional review board.
• Studies whose participants are recognizable in the manuscript but from whom written consent for publication was not obtained.
• Studies that involved possible research misconduct or publication misconduct, such as plagiarism, falsification of data, improprieties of/disputes over authorship, and failure to comply with legislative and regulatory requirements affecting research. PTJ is a member of COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics).
• Clinical trials that were not registered—or that were registered after the study began (retrospectively)—with insufficient explanation.
• Clinical trial papers that report outcomes different from those listed in the trial registry.
• Manuscripts whose English language usage is of such poor quality that the science cannot be adequately assessed by the peer review team or that cannot be adequately understood or replicated.
• Pure laboratory-based research with no linkage made to implications for practice.
• Literature reviews.

Help the Peer Review Team Understand the Value of Your Work

To help the editors and reviewers understand the value of your work, confirm your article type, and follow the guidance provided in the Table below. Please also follow PTJ ’s general writing and formatting instructions .

Regardless of the type of article you submit, remember to:

• In the abstract, after the conclusion, add an impact statement (1-3 sentences) about the impact/importance of your study to physical therapy and rehabilitation and/or the health of individuals or the community and society.
• CRediT : Each author’s contributions to the manuscript must be identified. PTJ uses the contributor roles taxonomy (CRediT), which allows authors to describe contributor roles in a standardized, transparent, and accurate way. As part of the online submission process, you will be required to choose from the contributor roles in the CRediT pull-down list. You may choose multiple contributor roles per author. Any other individuals who do not meet authorship criteria and made less substantive contributions should be listed in your manuscript (unmasked version) as non-author contributors with their contributions clearly described.
• For first submission: PTJ has a streamlined submission process designed to avoid unnecessary work for authors. Manuscripts can be submitted in any common document format that can be easily opened and read by others. A single PDF or Word file is usually reliable. At first submission, it is not necessary to apply formatting to match the journal’s “house style.” See Basic Guidelines for First Submission . After the initial review, you may be asked to supply editable files that match journal formatting requirements along with high-resolution figures.
• Presubmission Language Editing: If you are not confident in the quality of your English, you may wish to use a  language-editing service  to ensure that editors and reviewers understand your paper. Oxford University Press partners with Enago, a leading provider of author services. Prospective authors are entitled to a discount of 30% for editing services at Enago, via the Specialist English Editing Services for Oxford University Press Authors  page. Enago is an independent service provider, who will handle all aspects of this service, including payment. As an author you are under no obligation to take up this offer. Language editing is optional and does not guarantee that your manuscript will be accepted. Edited manuscripts will still undergo peer review by the journal.

Article Types and How to Prepare Them

Table. summary of article types.

Prepare a Review for Submission

Please use the following required elements:

Title : As appropriate, add “scoping review” or “meta-analysis” and/or “systematic review” as a subtitle at the end of the full title.

In the unmasked version of your paper : Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and any acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication).

Sections within the abstract : Objective, Methods (data sources, study selection, data extraction, data synthesis), Results, Conclusions, Impact Statement  

Word limit: Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4500 words (excluding abstract and references). Please provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.

Sections within the manuscript : Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion (include subsection “Limitations.” Methods section subheadings: Data Sources and Searches, Study Selection, Data Extraction and Quality Assessment, Data Synthesis and Analysis, Role of the Funding Source (specify any roles played by the funders, or add the statement “The funders played no role in the design, conduct, or reporting of this study”).

References : No more than 75.

General formatting instructions

Prepare a Clinical Trial for Submission

Clinical trial registration.

All clinical trials with patient-level outcome measures must be prospectively registered (ie, prior to enrollment of the first participant) in a recognized, public trial registry. Purpose is to prevent selective reporting of research outcomes. PTJ began its policy of requiring trial registration in 2008 (see Craik and Maher ). Authors who do not prospectively register a trial risk ineligibility for submission to PTJ . Confused about whether your study should be registered? Editor-in-Chief Alan Jette recommends that authors ask themselves 4 questions:

• Does your study involve human participants that are individual or clusters of patients and/or community participants?
• Does your study involve one or more health-related interventions?
• Does the study protocol determine who gets an intervention?
• Does the study examine the intervention effects on health-related biomedical or behavioral outcomes on the enrolled patients or community participants?

If you answer “yes” to all of these questions, your trial should be registered. In your cover letter:

• Specify where the trial is registered ( information about trial registration and registries) .
• Provide the trial's unique registration number.
• Include a statement regarding when enrollment began and when data collection stopped.

Trial registration is usually free and typically takes no more than 30 minutes. Acceptable registries must meet the following ICMJE requirements: be publicly available, searchable, and open to all prospective registrants; have a validation mechanism for registration data; and be managed by a not-for-profit organization. An acceptable registry includes, at a minimum, the following information: a unique identifying number, a statement of the intervention (or interventions) and comparison (or comparisons) studied, a statement of the study hypothesis, definitions of the primary and secondary outcome measures, eligibility criteria, key trial dates (registration date, anticipated or actual start date, anticipated or actual date of last follow-up, planned or actual date of closure to data entry, and date trial data considered complete), target number of participants, funding source, and contact information for the principal investigator. Two large registries are: ClinicalTrials.gov ( http://www.clinicaltrials.gov ), which is free; International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number ( http://www.controlled-trials.com/isrctn/ ). Other registries that ICMJE finds acceptable are: www.anzctr.org.au , www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/index/htm , www.trialregister.nl ,   https://eudract.ema.europa.eu . The World Health Organization (WHO) also has a registry network.

Authors are required to follow the CONSORT (Consolidated Standards Of Reporting Trials) statement and its extensions ( http://www.consort-statement.org/ ). Authors are required to include “modified CONSORT flow diagram for randomized, controlled trials of nonpharmacologic treatment” within the manuscript. For guidance, refer to the checklist for randomized trials of nonpharmacologic treatment (http://www.consort-statement.org/extensions/interventions/non-pharmacologic-treatment-interventions/ ).

For guidance, PTJ also recommends the use of the TIDieR (Template for Intervention Description and Replication) checklist .

It is essential that reports of trials provide sufficient details on interventions so that readers can judge the applicability and clinical relevance of results. Authors are encouraged to provide a trial treatment manual as a supplemental appendix.

Avoid Publication Spin

As noted by Jette and Costa , “an inherent temptation exists for researchers to report the findings of their research in the most favorable light. If researchers are not careful, they might fall into the trap of reporting their findings in a more favorable light than the findings deserve—what has been characterized as ‘spin’… The editors of PTJ are committed to providing our readers with the most accurate and impactful research available in the field of physical therapy and rehabilitation.” Authors of clinical trials are urged to reduce publication spin in experimental designs by prospectively registering the trial, following appropriate publication guidelines and checklists when preparing manuscripts for submission, and using effect sizes and confidence intervals in lieu of or in addition to reporting statistical significance of observed effects.

Title : For randomized trials, add the subtitle "Randomized Controlled Trial" as a subtitle at the end of the full title.

In the unmasked version of your paper: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). Also include an Ethics Approval statement that you received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee, and provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. You may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Abstract sections: Methods, Results, Conclusions, Impact Statement  

Word limit : Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.

Sections within the manuscript: Introduction, Methods (include subsection “Role of the Funding Source” to specify any roles played by the funders, or add the statement “The funders played no role in the design, conduct, or reporting of this study”), Results, Discussion (include subsection “Limitations”).  

Tables/figures : No more than 6 (combined total); additional tables and figures can be provided as supplemental material.

Prepare a Diagnostic Study for Submission

Authors are required to follow the STAndards for Reporting of Diagnostic accuracy (STARD) and to include a STARD flow diagram within the manuscript. For guidance, refer to the STARD checklist.

Title . Identify the article as a study of diagnostic accuracy somewhere in the title. In the unmasked version of your paper: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). Also include an Ethics Approval statement that you received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee, and provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. You may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Abstract sections: Objective, Methods, Results, Conclusions, Impact Statement Word limit: Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.

Sections within the manuscript: Introduction, Methods (include subsection “Role of the Funding Source” to specify any roles played by the funders, or add the statement “The funders played no role in the design, conduct, or reporting of this study”), Results, Discussion (include subsection “Limitations”).

Tables/figures: No more than 6 (combined total); additional tables and figures can be provided as supplemental material.

References . No more than 75.

Prepare a Measurement Evaluation Study for Submission

All measurement studies are required to follow the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN); refer to the  COSMIN checklist for guidance.

Studies that evaluate measurement properties must make a clear and compelling argument for how the findings would have a substantial impact on clinical practice.

In the unmasked version of your paper: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). As appropriate, also include an Ethics Approval statement that you received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee, and provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. You may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Abstract sections : Objective, Methods, Results, Conclusions, Impact Statement

Sections within the manuscript : Introduction, Methods (include subsection “Role of the Funding Source” to specify any roles played by the funders, or add the statement “The funders played no role in the design, conduct, or reporting of this study”), Results, Discussion (include subsection “Limitations”).

Prepare an Observational Study for Submission

In the unmasked version of your paper : Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). Also include an Ethics Approval statement that you received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee, and provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. You may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Word limit : Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.

Sections within the manuscript : Introduction, Methods (include subsection “Role of the Funding Source” to specify any roles played by the funders, or add the statement “The funders played no role in the design, conduct, or reporting of this study”), Results, Discussion (include subsection “Limitations”). 

Prepare a Qualitative Study for Submission

In addition to the Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research (SRQR) , the PTJ Editorial Board provides guidance for authors of qualitative studies here and recommends this website for further guidance. 

In the unmasked version of your paper : Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). As appropriate, include an Ethics Approval statement that you received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee, and provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. You may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Word limit: Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4500 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.

Prepare a Quality Improvement Study for Submission

In the unmasked version of your paper: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). As appropriate, include an Ethics Approval statement that you received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee, and provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. You may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Abstract sections: Objective, Methods, Results, Conclusions, Impact Statement

Word limit: Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.  

Prepare a Single-Subject Research Study for Submission

Single-subject research designs allow conclusions to be drawn about the effects of treatment based on the responses of a patient or patients under controlled conditions. Single-subject research is often confused with case reports; however, single-subject designs have 2 core elements that distinguish them from case reports: repeated measurements and design phases. 

Word limit : Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.  

Tables/figures : No more than 6 (combined total); additional tables and figures can be provided as supplemental material. References. No more than 75.

Prepare a Trial Protocol for Submission

PTJ editors believe that clinical trial protocols are essential for study conduct, review, reporting, and replication. Publication of protocols increases research quality and transparency, as they allow for timely dissemination of high-quality trial designs, prevention of study duplication, and improved interpretation of study findings. Protocol articles also can provide additional rationale for and background of the trial beyond what is commonly available in trial registries. Protocols published in PTJ must be from a randomized clinical trial that:

• Has the potential for substantial impact on the field of rehabilitation
• Is prospectively registered in a recognized clinical trials registry ( information about trial registration and registries )
• Has current institutional review board (IRB) approval
• Is not yet published; authors must submit a cover letter that assures PTJ that no part of the study protocol has been previously published or is under consideration for publication elsewhere
• Has fewer than 50% of participants enrolled
• Is not a pilot study

Title . Title should be descriptive and identify the study design, population, interventions, and, if applicable, trial acronym. In the unmasked version of your paper: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication).  

Abstract sections: Objective, Methods, Results (N/A), Conclusion (N/A) s, Impact Statement

Word limit: Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 3000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript.

Sections within the manuscript: Introduction (background and clear rationale for the need for the study, primary and secondary objectives, description of trial design), Methods (description of participants, interventions outcomes, assignment of interventions; description of data collection, management, analysis, monitoring and auditing), Ethics (informed consent, research ethics approval, confidentiality, role of the funding agency), and Discussion (potential impact and significance of study, strengths and weaknesses, contribution to the physical therapy/rehabilitation profession). 

Prepare Linking Evidence And Practice < LEAP > Article for Submission

LEAP articles highlight the findings of a recent Cochrane systematic review (SR) that provides evidence for recommendations relevant to physical therapist clinical decision making , and, using a brief case, illustrate the application of those recommendations. Only Cochrane SRs with searches completed within the past 3 years should be used. SRs that do not provide recommendations due to insufficient evidence should not be used. Author teams with both research and clinical expertise are encouraged; one team member should be a physical therapist. Authors interested in writing a LEAP article may submit their proposed topic to [email protected] .

Word limit : Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 2500 words; tables and figures, no more than 4 (combined total)

References : No more than 50.

Required Manuscript Elements

Abstract : Use the wording of abstracts found in previous LEAP articles , changing only the relevant final sentence(s) to fit your topic.

Background/introduction: Start with a brief description of the condition, usual treatment, and rationale for the intervention. End the section by introducing the systematic review (SR) and its purpose, inclusion criteria, and main outcomes. Include the search date of the SR (rather than the publication date) to indicate how up-to-date the SR is.

Take-home message: Provide a brief description of the SR results, then refer to the table (see below). In the take-home message, include number of included trials; number of participants; any brief, relevant description of the included trials; and data for the main outcomes of the SR. When summarizing the evidence from the SR, indicate the review authors' interpretation of the quality of the evidence, if available. In more recent Cochrane SRs, authors grade the strength of evidence based on the GRADE Working Group recommendations as high, moderate, low, or very low.

Case : Provide a case that applies the results of the SR. The case may be wholly factual, adapted from an actual case, or a representation of a typical patient with the relevant condition. Do not include the level of detail that might be important if this was a case report. Include the following headings in this order:

• “Can [intervention] help [the patient]?” Briefly describe the patient’s condition. Only data essential to the case and how it relates to the SR should be included.
• “How did the results of this systematic review apply to [the patient]?” Frame the question related to the case using a PICO format—population, intervention(s), comparator(s), outcome(s). Using the PICO format (patient relevance, intervention relevance, comparison relevance, outcome relevance), address how useful or relevant the SR results are for the purpose of synthesizing an intervention plan for this patient. Describe the clinician’s specific recommendation for intervention(s) for the patient based on the SR results.
• “How well do the outcomes of the intervention provided to the patient match those suggested by the systematic review?” Briefly describe the patient’s outcomes, including the clinical importance of any changes in relevant measures.
• “Can you apply the results of this systematic review to your own patients?” Provide a brief summary of the types of patients to whom the results of the SR apply in general. In some cases, discussion of additional material may be of relevance, such as pertinent SRs of other interventions for the condition being discussed, or the results of trials published subsequent to the search date of the SR.
• “What can be advised based on the results of this systematic review?” Include a brief summary of recommended intervention(s) relevant to those reported in the SR.

Table of key results: Include the following details in this order:

• Overview - Search date, number of included trials and number and characteristics of participants. Details about the intervention(s) such as frequency, intensity, duration (eg, “4 studies – 3 times/week; 10 studies – 1 time/week”) and comparators.
• Main outcomes of the review - In general, divide the results according to comparisons that were made (eg, Treatment A versus placebo; Treatment A versus Treatment B). Indicate how many trials and participants each reported outcome is based on, the risks of bias, and, if available, the overall quality of evidence based on the GRADE Working Group recommendations. Report the size of the treatment effects for each outcome with significant differences favoring one treatment over another. These effects should be reported in units that clinicians can easily interpret; for example, they could be differences in proportions improved (for dichotomous outcomes) or mean differences (for continuous measures) (eg, pain scores). Provide an indication of the absolute benefit that could be expected from the treatment for each outcome. If the effect is presented as a standardized mean difference, revert it back into a clinically understandable unit. If this is not possible, please provide criteria for interpreting these (eg, Cohen criteria: small, medium, large effect; minimal detectable change [MDC] or minimal clinically important difference [MCID].

Prepare a Case Report for Submission

PTJ publishes case reports about potentially transformational interventions of a clinical, educational, or administrative nature. Case reports should:

• Emphasize novelty and innovation, addressing clinical conditions or approaches that have not been previously studied in the published rehabilitation literature.
• Clearly inform and advance practice, administrative, or educational methods or suggest testable hypotheses for future research.

Along with their signed copyright release forms, authors of Case Reports should submit a signed patient consent form (or signed IRB consent form). Case report authors who practice in the United States should also include a statement about meeting the HIPAA (Health Insurance, Portability, and Accountability Act) requirements of the institution for disclosure of protected health information.

Title : Add “Case Report” as a subtitle at the end of the full title.

In the unmasked version of your pape r: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication).

Abstract sections: Objective, Methods (case description), Results, Conclusion, Impact Statement  

Word limit : Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 2000 words (excluding abstract and references); provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript. To condense information to meet the word limit, PTJ recommends that case report authors use tables whenever possible to provide important details (history, examination, intervention, and outcome information for clinical case reports; program elements and materials for educational/administrative case reports). Maximum number of tables and/or figures=3 (combined total).

Sections within the manuscript: Background and Purpose, Case Description, Outcomes, Discussion. Tables/figures: No more than 3 (combined total); additional tables/figures can be supplied as supplemental material.

References : No more than 20.

Prepare a Perspective for Submission

In the unmasked version of your paper: Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations, and acknowledgments (be sure to get permission from those you want to acknowledge in your publication). 

Abstracts : There are no headings in perspective abstracts.

Word limit: Abstract, no more than 300 words; manuscript, no more than 4500 words (excluding abstract).

Tables/figures: No more than 6 (combined total); additional tables/figures can be supplied as supplemental material.

Prepare a Point of View for Submission

POVs frequently include calls to action. Authors interested in writing a POV should contact the editor in chief at [email protected] .   

Abstract : There is no abstract in a POV.

Word limit: 1600 words

Tables/figures : No more than 2 (combined total); additional tables/figures can be supplied as supplemental material.

References : No more than 25.

Prepare a Letter to the Editor for Submission

Letters to the Editor provide reader perspectives on articles published in PTJ and should be submitted within 6 months of the article's publication. 

Author affiliations:    Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations.

Abstract : None.

Word limit: 800–1000 words

Tables/figures : None unless there is a special need.

References : No more than 5.

PTJ encourages dialog and invites readers to submit thoughtful comments on published articles. The commenting feature is located at the bottom of each article. Edited selections of posted comments may be published and indexed as letters to the editor in PubMed .

General Requirements and Formatting for All Article Types

Authors are asked to ensure that manuscripts conform to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors’ Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals .

All manuscripts must be formatted double-spaced. Please use 12-point font. Submit both a masked copy and an unmasked copy. In the masked version, please remove author names and any affiliations within the article. Manuscript elements, in order of appearance: (1) Title page, (2) Abstract, (3) Body of article, (4) Acknowledgments, (5) References, (6) Tables, (7) Figure legends, (8) Figures, (9) Video legends, (10) Appendixes. To help speed the review process, please follow PTJ ’s specific guidelines below:

Basic Formatting Guidance for First Submissions

Author affiliations, publication ethics.

• Ethics Approval Statement
• Funding and Statement on Role of the Funding Source

Authorship and Contributorship

Competing or conflicting interests, patient/participant protection, writing to communicate effectively with reviewers and readers, tables and figures, supplementary material.

• You are asked to submit an anonymous (all author identifiers removed) version and an unmasked version.
• On the first page of the unmasked version, please include manuscript title, author names and affiliations, and the address (including email) of the corresponding author.
• Provide a short abstract (no more than 300 words), avoiding abbreviations and reference citations.
• Define nonstandard abbreviations at the first occurrence.
• Number tables and figures consecutively by appearance, and provide a legend for each. Avoid overcrowding in tables and unnecessary clutter in figures. The initial submission should have figures, tables, and text in one file. Upon request, please be prepared to provide high-resolution figures separately, in a common image format (eg, eps, tif, jpg).  
• Videos can be published in the online article, with a still image representing the video appearing in the print version. Submit videos in MP4 format if possible. All videos should have an accompanying legend.
• References can be formatted in any readable style at submission. Authors are responsible for the accuracy of the references. Later, authors may be asked to comply with the journal’s citation convention ( we use AMA style ).
• Include acknowledgements, details of funding sources, and grant numbers at the end of the text. Use author initials to indicate which authors were in receipt of grants. 
• Please include at submission all files containing supplementary material cited in the text.

On the title page of the unmasked version of your article, please include the following:

• List author names in the order in which they should be published, with author bio information. Example for corresponding author: A.M. Jette, PT, PhD, Department of Physical Therapy, MGH Institute of Health Professions, 36 1st Avenue, Boston, MA 02129 (USA). Address all correspondence to Dr Jette at: [email protected]. Example for coauthors: A.M. Jette, PT, PhD, Department of Physical Therapy, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Boston, Massachusetts.
• Include authors’ professional credentials, terminal academic degrees (eg, PT, DPT; MD, PhD), affiliations.
• Clinical Trial or Systematic Review Registration number, as applicable.

Authors should observe high standards with respect to publication ethics as set out by the  Commission on Publication Ethics (COPE) . Falsification or fabrication of data, plagiarism, including duplicate publication of the authors’ own work without proper citation, and misappropriation of the work are all unacceptable practices. Any cases of ethical misconduct are treated very seriously and will be dealt with in accordance with the COPE guidelines.

Ethics Approval 

All original research reports involving human participants must include a statement that the authors received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee. In the unmasked version of your manuscript, provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study. Please also provide a statement about deidentification of data as applicable. Authors may also include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Funding and Statement on Role of Funding Source  

All manuscripts reporting on studies that received funding support should include a section under Methods titled “Role of the Funding Source.” The statement should include the name of the funder(s) and the role(s) played by the funder(s). If the funder(s) played no role, authors are asked to include the statement, “The funder played no role in the design, conduct, or reporting of this study.”

All individuals listed as authors should qualify for authorship and should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content. Based on the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals (ICMJE Recommendations 2018), those listed as authors in the manuscript should meet all of the following criteria:

• Made substantial contributions to the conception and design, acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data, AND
• Participated in drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, AND
• Gave final approval of the version to be published, AND
• Agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Information about author roles and responsibilities must be made clear. Any other contributors to the work who do not qualify for authorship should be listed in an acknowledgment section. Upon submission of the manuscript, all authors will be asked to complete an electronic ICMJE form that includes authorship information, and, if the paper is accepted for publication, the author contributions will be listed at the end of the article.

Acknowledgments should be formal and as brief as possible and limited to recognizing individuals who have made specific and important contributions to the work being reported. Be sure to obtain permission to include the names of those you wish to acknowledge.

PTJ follows the guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Upon submission, all authors will be asked to complete an electronic ICMJE disclosure of potential conflicts of interest (COI) that might constitute an embarrassment to any of the authors if it were not to be declared and were to emerge after publication (eg, shareholding in or receipt of a grant or consultancy fee from a company whose product features in the submitted manuscript or that manufactures a competing product). Forms must be submitted even if there is no conflict of interest. It is the responsibility of the corresponding author to ensure that all authors adhere to this policy prior to submission. Each author is responsible for indicating their authorship roles and responsibilities.

A conflict of interest statement must also be included in the manuscript after "Acknowledgments" and "Funding" sections and should summarize all aspects of any conflicts of interest included on the ICMJE form. If there is no conflict of interest, authors must include the statement: “Conflict of Interest: none declared.”

Authors should submit documentation of patient or participant consent for photographs and videos that feature patients or participants. The use of black tape to mask faces is no longer considered sufficient.

Within the manuscript, authors must include a statement in the "Methods" section that they obtained informed consent of participants, as required for protection of human participants.

Statistical Style

Clinical relevance . In reporting statistical results, P values alone are insufficient. Authors must report the magnitude and/or precision of statistical estimates (eg, 95% CI) to enhance data interpretation and clarify which results potentially have an impact on clinical practice .

Percentages . Report percentages to 1 decimal place (ie, xx.x %).

Standard deviations . Report averages with standard deviations when data are normally distributed. Use "mean (SD)" rather than "mean ± SD" notation. Report confidence intervals (CI) rather than standard errors. In tables and within text, ranges should be displayed as “xx – xx,” unless there are negative values; in which case, all ranges in the manuscript (for consistency) should be displayed as “xx to xx” to avoid confusion for readers and reviewers.

Median . Report median (minimum, maximum) or median (25th, 75th percentile [interquartile range, or IQR]) when data are not normally distributed.

P values. Report exact P values to 2 decimal places, except when P ≤ .001 and, in that case, P ≤ .001 is sufficient. P values alone are insufficient and must be accompanied with appropriate magnitude and precision estimate (see Clinical Relevance).

PTJ follows the American Medical Association [AMA] Manual of Style , 10th ed, published by Oxford University Press.

Titles . Titles should not be vague and should reflect measured variables. For instance, instead of using "physical therapy" to refer to intervention, state specific interventions (eg, "strengthening exercises"). Titles (including subtitles) should be no longer than 150 characters (including punctuation and spaces).

Abstract . Word limit: 300 words. Please provide the manuscript word count on the abstract page of your manuscript. Use only complete sentences throughout the abstract and the manuscript. For proper headings within the abstract, see the instructions for article types .  

Body of Manuscript. See the instructions for article types .

Abbreviations/acronyms. All terms must be spelled out, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses, at first mention. The abbreviation/acronym should be used consistently thereafter (except at the beginning of a sentence). An abbreviation/ acronym should be used at least 3 times in the abstract and at least 5 times in the text to be allowed (can have exceptions for very long spelled-out forms or terms that readers may recognize only in their abbreviated forms).  Physical therapist and physical therapy should always be spelled out – PT is not permitted as an abbreviation in the text.

Measurements . Please use the International System of Units. (English units may be given in parentheses.)

Equipment manufacturers. For all equipment and products mentioned in the text, place the model name/number and the manufacturer and location (city, state, country) in parentheses in the text. In the "Data Analysis" section, specify the statistical software—version, manufacturer, and manufacturer's location—that was used for analyses.

Explanatory footnotes . PTJ prefers to avoid explanatory footnotes within the text; however, if they are needed, use consecutive symbols (*, †, ‡, §, ||, #, **, ††, ‡‡, §§, ||||, ##).

There should be no more than a combined total of 6 tables and figures. Additional tables and figures can be included as supplementary material . 

Tables should be formatted in Word, numbered consecutively, and placed together at the end of the manuscript. Authors should define all abbreviations/acronyms used in the table in a footnote (a) to the table title. In tables that describe characteristics of 2 or more groups:

• Report averages with standard deviations when data are normally distributed.
• Report median (minimum, maximum) or median (25th, 75th percentile [interquartile range, or IQR]) when data are not normally distributed.

PTJ does NOT accept LaTeX files for figures. Figure resolution should be no less than 300 dpi for halftone (photo) images, 600 dpi for composite images, and 1200 dpi for line art, and at no less than 1080px width. Most standard figure formats are acceptable, but .tiff or .png is recommended for halftone and composite images and .png for line art and vector graphics. Avoid imbedding images into Microsoft Word documents, as they will not reproduce well in publication. Images created with multiple layers should be flattened to a single layer prior to submission.

Multi-paneled figures should be supplied as a single file with each panel lettered clearly (eg, A, B, C). Avoid placing letters over shaded areas if possible. You can send queries about figure files to [email protected] .

Figure accessibility and alt text

Incorporating alt text (alternative text) when submitting your paper helps to foster inclusivity and accessibility. Good alt text ensures that individuals with visual impairments or those using screen readers can comprehend the content and context of your figures. The aim of alt text is to provide concise and informative descriptions of your figure so that all readers have access to the same level of information and understanding, and that all can engage with and benefit from the visual elements integral to scholarly content. Including alt text demonstrates a commitment to accessibility and enhances the overall impact and reach of your work.  

Alt text is applicable to all images, figures, illustrations, and photographs. 

Alt text is only accessible via e-reader and so it won’t appear as part of the typeset article. 

Detailed guidance on how to draft and submit alt text . 

Appendixes should be numbered consecutively and placed at the very end of the manuscript after tables and figures. Use appendixes to provide essential material not suitable for figures, tables, or text. If appendixes exceed 3 manuscript pages, PTJ will recommend that they be treated as supplemental material.

PTJ hosts a variety of supplemental data that cannot be published within the article or that exceeds allowed word, table, or figure counts. Supplemental files can include tables, figures, appendixes, video clips, PowerPoint files, or Excel spreadsheets. The videos can be of patients, procedures, interventions, or any other relevant part of the study or case. (See PTJ Videos for recent examples.)

If a manuscript contains tables or figures that exceed PTJ 's maximum, you will be asked at submission to indicate which ones could be provided as supplementary material. To help the reader, PTJ recommends that Original Research, Trial Protocol, and Case Report authors submit supplementary materials such as study protocols, treatment manuals, detailed descriptions of evaluation and intervention procedures, treatment progression algorithms, etc.

Submit all material to be considered as supplementary material at the same time as you submit the main manuscript. Ensure that the supplementary material is referred to in the main manuscript at an appropriate point in the text. Supplementary material will not be copyedited, so please ensure that it is clearly and succinctly presented and that the style conforms with the main paper. If your supplementary material includes presentation slides, please ensure that they will work on any Internet browser. It is not recommended for supplementary files to be more than 2 MB each, although exceptions can be made at the Editorial Office’s discretion.

Preferred format for video clips is .mpg. Because of sophisticated compression techniques, .mpg files are much smaller than other formats for the same quality. These files also are compatible with both Windows Media Player (PC) and QuickTime (Mac). Other acceptable formats include: .mov (QuickTime Movie), .wmv (Windows Media Video), .mp4, and .avi (Audio Video Interleave). If the manuscript is accepted for publication, the video file will be converted to .mpg format and will accompany the final version of the article online.

File size . To minimize the time it takes for video files to download, the file size of the video should be as small as possible but large enough to still preserve clarity and sharpness.

• Minimum dimensions: 320 pixels wide by 240 pixels deep
• Maximum length: 5 minutes

Where applicable, include a citation to each video in the manuscript text and include the title (10–15 words maximum) and a legend for the video in the manuscript after the figure captions.

If patients are in the video, either they should not be identifiable or they must give written permission for you to include the video with your published article.  

Permissions to Reprint Tables and Figures From Other Sources

To reproduce any third-party material (eg, tables, figures, images) within their article, authors must obtain permission from the copyright holder and be compliant with any requirements the copyright holder may have pertaining to this reuse. When seeking to reproduce any kind of third-party material, authors should request the following:

• Nonexclusive rights to reproduce the material in the specified article and journal
• Electronic rights, preferably for use in any form or medium
• The right to use the material for the life of the work
• Worldwide English-language rights

PTJ is not able to accept permissions that carry a time limit because we retain journal articles as part of our online journal archive.

Third-party content in open access papers. If you plan to publish your paper under an open access license but the paper contains material for which you do not have open access reuse permissions, please state this clearly by supplying the following credit line alongside the material:

• Title of content. Author, original publication, year of original publication, by permission of [rights holder]. This image/content is not covered by the terms of the Creative Commons license of this publication. For permission to reuse, please contact the rights holder.

Within the text: references should be cited within the text, using consecutive numbers in superscript.

Reference list: References should be listed at the end of the manuscript and numbered consecutively, in order of citation in the manuscript. In-text citations and the references should match. If you use End Notes, please use version 6.0 or higher.

• Authors’ names are inverted, and use only initials for first and middle names. No periods between initials.
• In article titles, only the first word and proper nouns and abbreviations that are ordinarily capitalized are capitalized.
• Use accepted Index Medicus abbreviations of journal names (see the National Library of Medicine Catalog ).   
• For journals, don’t use issue numbers in parentheses after the volume number. 
• Hu P, Reuben DB. Effects of managed care on the length of time that elderly patients spend with physicians during ambulatory visits. Med Care . 2002;40:606-613.
• Geller AC, Venna S, Prout M, et al. Should the skin cancer examination be taught in medical school? Arch Dermatol . 2002;138:1201-1203. 
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Licensure of a meningococcal conjugate vaccine (Menveo) and guidance for use--Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), 2010. M MWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep . 2010;59(9):273.
• Gage BF, Fihn SD, White RH. Management and dosing of warfarin therapy. T he American Journal of Medicine . 2000;109(6):481-488. doi:10.1016/S0002-9343(00)00545-3.
• Aggleton JP. Understanding anterograde amnesia: disconnections and hidden lesions. Q J Exp Psychol. 2008;61(10):1441-1471. Available at: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=pbh&AN=34168185&site=ehost-live. Accessed March 18, 2010.                        
• McKenzie BC. Medicine and the Internet: Introducing Online Resources and Terminology . 2nd ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 1997.      
• Guyton JL, Crockarell JR. Fractures of acetabulum and pelvis. In: Canale ST, ed. Campbell's Operative Orthopaedics . 10th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Mosby, Inc; 2003:2939-2984.           

Once accepted manuscripts have been sent to PTJ ’s publishing partner, Oxford University Press (OUP), authors are invited to complete an online copyright license-to-publish form. It is a condition of publication in PTJ that authors grant an exclusive license to the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).

Please note that, by submitting an article for publication, you are confirming that: (1) you are the corresponding/submitting author, (2) OUP may retain your email address for the purpose of communicating with you about the article (eg, for transmitting article proofs), and (3) you agree to notify OUP immediately if your contact details change. If your article is accepted for publication, OUP will contact you using the email address you used in the submission process. 

Availability of Data and Materials

Where ethically feasible, PTJ strongly encourages authors to make all data and software code on which the conclusions of the paper rely available to readers. We suggest that data be presented in the main manuscript or additional supporting files, or deposited in a public repository whenever possible. For information on general repositories for all data types, and a list of recommended repositories by subject area, please see  Choosing where to archive your data .

Data Citation

PTJ supports the Force 11 Data Citation Principles and requires that all publicly available datasets be fully referenced in the reference list with an accession number or unique identifier such as a digital object identifier (DOI). Data citations should include the minimum information recommended by DataCite :

• [dataset]* Authors, Year, Title, Publisher (repository or archive name), Identifier

*The inclusion of the [dataset] tag at the beginning of the citation helps us to correctly identify and tag the citation. This tag will be removed from the citation published in the reference list.

PTJ ’s Publishing Model and Peer Review Process

PTJ is copublished by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and Oxford University Press and is the official journal of APTA. As of January 2020, PTJ is an online-only journal published at https://academic.oup.com/ptj . Issues are published monthly, with related podcasts, videos, and supplementary data. Accepted articles are published under Advance Access ( https://academic.oup.com/ptj/advance-articles ) prior to publication in an issue. The site is fully searchable and contains all current and historical issues of PTJ (1921 through present). Content is free access from 1990 through to 12 months prior to current date.

APTA grants editorial freedom to the editor in chief, who is appointed by APTA’s Board of Directors. The views expressed in PTJ are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of APTA.

PTJ follows the code on good publication practice put forth by the Committee on Publication Ethics ( COPE ), the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors , and checklists and guidance from recognized sources such as the EQUATOR network .

Open Access Policy

PTJ offers the option of publishing under either a standard licence or an open access licence. Please note that some funders require open access publication as a condition of funding. If you are unsure whether you are required to publish open access, please do clarify any such requirements with your funder or institution.

Should you wish to publish your article open access, you should select your choice of open access licence in our online system after your article has been accepted for publication. You will need to pay an open access charge to publish under an open access licence.

Details of the open access licences and open access charges.

OUP has a growing number of Read and Publish agreements with institutions and consortia which provide funding for open access publishing. This means authors from participating institutions can publish open access, and the institution may pay the charge. Find out if your institution is participating.

Please note that you may be eligible for a discount to the open access charge based on society membership. Authors may be asked to prove eligibility for the member discount.

Deposit of Articles to Approved Public Repositories

On behalf of authors, PTJ and Oxford University Press will directly deposit content with declared funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the National Library of Medicine's PubMed Central (PMC). Funding information is collected at the time of article submission via ScholarOne.

For information on complying with other funder policies, please visit: https://academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/funder_policies.

For information about authors self-archiving versions of their work on their own web pages, on institutional web pages, and in other repositories, please see https://academic.oup.com/journals/pages/access_purchase/rights_and_permissions/self_archiving_policy_b . In many situations, PTJ has a 12-month embargo period.

Peer Review Process

The Editor in Chief and Editorial Board reserve the right to reject, without full review, any manuscript that does not meet PTJ requirements. Each manuscript is prescreened by an Editorial Board member team. Median time to prescreen manuscripts received in 2018 that did not qualify for full review was 18 days, allowing authors to move on quickly to another journal. 

Manuscripts that qualify for full review typically are reviewed by 2 content experts, a statistical consultant or methods expert as appropriate, and an Editorial Board member. Both the reviewers and the Editorial Board members are required to complete a conflict-of-interest statement for each manuscript they review. For all manuscripts that received an initial review in the first half of 2019, median time was 61 days.

Manuscripts reporting on original research that has the potential to make a strong and immediate impact on the field of rehabilitation are considered for fast-track peer review (14 days from submission to first decision). Only manuscripts in the Original Research category are considered for fast tracking. Authors must request fast-track review prior to submission by sending the abstract and a rationale for why their paper should be fast tracked to [email protected] . Please put FAST TRACK in the subject line.

PTJ’s 2019 acceptance rate was 25%.  

Once you have submitted your manuscript via ScholarOne, you can check on its progress by visiting the ScholarOne website. If you have any questions during the review period, contact [email protected] .

Authors should observe high standards with respect to publication ethics as set out by the  Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) . Falsification or fabrication of data, plagiarism (including duplicate publication of the authors’ own work without proper citation), nondisclosure of conflicts of interest, and misappropriation of the work, among other actions, are all unacceptable practices. Any cases of ethical misconduct are treated very seriously and will be dealt with in accordance with the COPE guidelines. At a minimum, PTJ checks all accepted manuscripts using anti-plagiarism software.

To avoid redundancy in the literature, authors must provide a copy of any related papers—that is, submitted or published papers that deal with the same data, in part or in full, being reported in the manuscript being submitted to  PTJ —and a cover letter explaining how the new submission is separate and distinct. These materials will be confidential and will be viewed only by the editors.

PTJ  reviews and considers a manuscript for exclusive publication with the understanding that the manuscript, or any substantial portion of the manuscript (as judged by the Editor in Chief), has not been published previously and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, whether in print or electronic form. This policy does not usually preclude consideration of (1) a manuscript that has been rejected by another journal or (2) a complete report that follows publication of a preliminary report or pilot study. Papers presented at a scientific meeting usually will not be considered to constitute prior publication, but such presentations should not be amplified by additional data or copies of tables and illustrations. Authors retain the right to make an Author’s Original Version (preprint) available through various channels, and this does not prevent submission to the journal. For further information see our Online Licensing, Copyright and Permissions policies. If accepted, the authors are required to update the status of any preprint, including your published paper’s DOI, as described on our Author Self-Archiving policy page .  Authors who need clarification of these policies are encouraged to contact the  managing editor  before releasing or distributing information from the manuscript via press releases, mainstream media, or social media.

Disclosure of Commercial/Financial Associations and Conflict of Interest  

All funding sources supporting the work should be acknowledged. During the submission process, authors will be prompted to enter this information, if applicable.

PTJ  has adopted the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) initiative to standardize a format for disclosing competing interests. Each author is required to complete the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest during the submission process. This information will be held in confidence by the Editor in Chief during the review process and, if the paper is accepted for publication, will be shared with readers as appropriate.

Ethical Approval of Research and Informed Consent 

All Research Reports must include a statement that the study complies with the Declaration of Helsinki and that the authors received approval or a waiver from a properly constituted ethics committee. In the cover letter that is submitted with the manuscript, authors should provide the name of the institutional review board (IRB), institutional animal care and use committee, or other similar body that approved the study.

Authors also should submit patient consent forms for photographs or videos. Within the manuscript, authors must include a statement in the "Method" section that they obtained informed consent of participants, when required for protection of human subjects. Along with their signed copyright release forms, authors of Case Reports should submit a signed  patient consent form . Case Report authors who practice in the United States should also include a statement about meeting the HIPAA (Health Insurance, Portability, and Accountability Act) requirements of the institution for disclosure of protected health information.

Policy on Data Availability

At this time, PTJ does not mandate open data; however, authors are encouraged to include a data availability statement in their manuscript, explaining where and how readers can access the dataset associated with their work. The “minimum dataset” is that needed for independent verification of research results; it is up to the author to determine the minimum dataset to be shared. Some authors might share the full raw data, whereas others might share a subset of the data related to the specific article.

The preferred way to share large datasets is via public repositories that coordinate public release of the data with the journal’s publication date. It is the responsibility of the author to communicate with the repository to ensure that public release is made on time for online publication of the paper. Unstructured repositories, such as Figshare and Dryad , are alternatives. Datasets can also be made available with the published article as supplementary material. If data files cannot be deposited in an accessible repository and PTJ ’s editors request to see the data, authors will be asked to make the data available.  

When datasets have a persistent identifier, or DOI, it should be cited in both the text and the references. Example statements on data availability: “The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in [repository name] at http://doi.org/[doi], reference number [reference number],” “The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article [and/or] its supplementary material,” “Raw data were generated at [facility name]. Derived data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author on request,” or “Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analyzed in this study.”

Source code for any specialized, inhouse scripts or programs that are necessary for the reproduction of results also can be deposited in a public repository or uploaded as supplementary material. 

PTJ requires submitting authors to provide an ORCID iD at submission to the journal. More information on ORCID and the benefits of using an ORCID iD is available. If you do not already have an ORCID iD, you can register for free via the ORCID website .

If you've never used  PTJ  ScholarOne as an author or reviewer before,  click here  to  Create a New Account , and follow the prompts to submit your information and establish a user ID and password. Once you have your user ID and password, login, click on your  Author Center , and then click on  Submit First Draft of New Manuscript . You will be prompted to enter data into 6 screens and then upload your manuscript.

If you're a manuscript reviewer or an author who has already used PTJ ScholarOne, you already have a user ID and password, and you can submit here . Once you have logged in, click on  Author Center, and either click on  Submit First Draft of New Manuscript  (if you are submitting a new manuscript) or  Revised Manuscripts  (only for those who received a manuscript decision of "Accept With Revision" or "Major Revision"). Technical assistance is available by clicking on an icon at the top of the login screen; you also may contact Editorial Tracking Manager  Karen Darley  or Managing Editor  Jan Reynolds  if you have any questions.

When you submit: It is important that the submitting author verify the current email addresses for all coauthors prior to submission. After the submitted manuscript has undergone the initial intake process, all authors will receive instructions and a personalized link for submitting an authorship form. If incorrect email addresses are provided, the coauthors will not receive the instructions, thereby delaying the process. Please note that the personalized link can be used only once. Any corrections needed thereafter will necessitate the editorial office sending instructions for manually accessing the form in Manuscript Central.

For questions about the status of your manuscript, contact [email protected]

For technical questions about the ScholarOne submission site, contact editorial tracking manager

For other questions, contact managing editor

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ⓘ Alabandite

ⓘ Bannisterite

ⓘ Clino-suenoite

ⓘ Fluorapatite

ⓘ Hübnerite

ⓘ Neotocite

ⓘ Pyrolusite

ⓘ Pyrophanite

ⓘ Rhodochrosite

ⓘ Rhodonite

ⓘ var. Orlets

ⓘ Spessartine

ⓘ Tephroite

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Detailed Mineral List:

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

List of minerals for each chemical element

Localities in this Region

• Kurganovskoe deposit

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

• Ural Volcanic Arcs Volcanic Arc
• Middle Urals Mountain Range
• ⭔ Western Siberian basin (Zapadno-Sibirskiy basin) Economic Region

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• v.66(4); Fall 2014

Language: English | French

Types and Quality of Physical Therapy Research Publications: Has There Been a Change in the Past Decade?

Kaitlyn snell.

* Department of Physical Therapy, University of Toronto

Lauren Sutherland

Tristan senior, tania janaudis-ferreira.

† Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

‡ West Park Healthcare Centre, Toronto, ON.

Dina Brooks

Associated data.

Purpose: To describe and compare the type and quality of evidence published in physical therapy (PT) journals during two time periods (2000–2002 vs. 2010–2012) and to explore scientific editors' opinions on changes in the types and quality of articles. Methods: A quantitative, longitudinal, retrospective journal review was used to categorize and assess the methodological rigour of items published in four PT journals using the Hedges Project. A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional survey explored the opinions of scientific editors. Percentages and frequencies of article types (as defined by the Hedges Project criteria), items passing rigour, and editor responses were calculated. Statistical significance of differences in article type and rigour between the two time periods was determined using Fisher's Exact Test. Results: There was a significant increase in original studies and review articles from 2000–2002 to 2010–2012 ( p <0.001, p =0.002, respectively). The overall pass rate for rigour was 33.3% in 2000–2002 and 42.5% in 2010–2012, showing a significant increase ( p =0.019). The majority of editors reported an increase in systematic reviews, qualitative designs, and randomized controlled trials and believed that quality had improved by 2010–2012. Conclusion: From 2000–2002 to 2010–2012, the quality of articles published in PT journals improved and the proportion of original studies and review articles increased.

RÉSUMÉ

Objectif : Décrire et comparer le type et la qualité des données probantes publiées dans les revues de physiothérapie de deux périodes (2010–2012 et 2000–2002) et explorer les opinions des rédacteurs scientifiques sur l'évolution du type et de la qualité des articles. Méthodes : Un examen rétrospectif quantitatif et longitudinal des revues a permis de classer par catégorie les articles publiés dans quatre revues de physiothérapie et d'évaluer leur rigueur méthodologique, grâce au projet Hedges. Une étude transversale descriptive quantitative a permis d'explorer les opinions des rédacteurs scientifiques. Les pourcentages et les fréquences des types d'article (selon la définition des critères du projet Hedges), les articles d'une rigueur suffisante et les réponses des rédacteurs ont été calculés. La signification statistique des différences dans le type et la rigueur des articles entre les deux périodes a été déterminée à l'aide de la méthode exacte de Fisher. Résultats : Il y a eu une importante augmentation dans le nombre d'études originales et d'exposés de synthèse de 2000–2002 à 2010–2012 ( p <0,001, p =0,002, respectivement). Le taux de réussite global pour ce qui est de la rigueur était de 33,3% en 2000–2002 et de 42,5% en 2010–2012, ce qui constitue une augmentation importante ( p =0,019). La majorité des rédacteurs ont signalé une augmentation des examens systématiques, des conceptions qualitatives, et des essais contrôlés randomisés, et ils étaient d'avis que la qualité s'était améliorée. Conclusion : De 2000–2002 à 2010–2012, la qualité des articles publiés dans les revues de physiothérapie s'est améliorée et la proportion d'études originales et d' exposés de synthèses a augmenté.

Physical therapists need high-quality scientific literature to inform their own evidence-based practice (EBP). 1 Various study designs can contribute to providing evidence for EBP, including randomized controlled trials (RCTs), 2 – 5 single-subject designs and case series, 6 cohort and observational studies, 5 and qualitative methodologies. 7 , 8 While RCTs have been viewed as the “gold standard” for quality in research design, 9 they cannot always be applied to physical therapy (PT) practice; 6 furthermore, some questions are better answered using other designs. For example, qualitative methodologies may be more appropriate for obtaining information on clients' experiences and feelings. 7

The amount of published PT literature has increased significantly over the years: 10 – 14 Wiles and colleagues 12 found that the number of articles published in Physical Therapy doubled from 1945 to 2010, Fell and colleagues 13 found that the number of articles indexed in Medline more than doubled between 2000 and 2009, and Kumar and colleagues found that there was a sharp increase in PT publications in PubMed from 2000 to 2010. 14

Trends in types of PT literature have also been evaluated. Wiles and colleagues 12 found that systematic reviews, cohort studies, and non-randomized controlled trials in Physical Therapy increased in prevalence from 1945 to 2010; Coronado and colleagues 10 found an increased percentage of research reports, systematic reviews, and qualitative studies, but a decrease in topical reviews and non-systematic reports from 1980 to 2009, with no change in case reports or RCTs. 10 More recently, Kumar and colleagues 14 examined PT literature in PubMed between 1970 and 2010; they found that clinical trials, RCTs, and review articles were most prevalent, with a rapid increase after 1995.

It is not clear whether the growth in PT literature has corresponded to an increase in quality. A variety of tools have been used to assess quality in PT and rehabilitation journals, including quantitative content analyses driven by hierarchical levels of evidence 1 , 5 and citation-driven bibliometric analyses. 10 , 12 , 13 , 15 , 16 However, these measures have shortcomings: not all research questions are appropriately answered by RCT methodology, 6 , 17 and bibliometric analyses measure trends and interest in published reports rather than the quality of the literature.

Miller and colleagues 18 have assessed quality using a unique standard, the Hedges Project, which uses rigour criteria as a measure of quality for different study designs. 18 The Hedges Project classifies publications by format ( original study , review article , case report , or general and miscellaneous ), interest to human health care ( of interest or not of interest ), purpose ( etiology ; prognosis ; diagnosis ; treatment, prevention, continuing medical education, or quality improvement ; economics ; clinical prediction guide ; qualitative study ; or something else ), and rigour. The rigour criteria correspond to each purpose of publication ( Box 1 ; see Miller and colleagues 18 for complete Hedges Project criteria). Miller and colleagues 18 assessed 179 articles from core PT journals published from 2000 to 2001 and found that approximately 11% of those articles passed the assessment for rigour.

Rigour Criteria for Each Purpose Category as Defined in the Hedges Project from Miller and colleagues 18 (p.131)

Another way to assess the quality of evidence is to seek the opinions of experts in PT literature: the editors of PT journals. Editors' opinions on the quality of literature have not been evaluated in rehabilitation or PT; previous surveys have mainly evaluated editors' practices and behaviours in medical and nursing journals 19 , 20 and the issue of excessive publication in scientific literature. 21 , 22

To capture the trends in publication of PT literature, we need a measure of quality that encompasses more than the hierarchy of evidence or bibliometrics, as well as the opinions of leaders in the field. The purpose of our study, therefore, is to describe the types and quality of evidence published in PT journals and to explore the future of those journals. By applying the Hedges Project criteria and exploring editors' opinions, the study describes the current types and quality of research in PT journals. The specific objectives of this study are (1) to describe the types and quality of evidence published in core PT journals, (2) to compare the types and quality of evidence published in core PT journals (2010–2012 vs. 2000–2002), and (3) to explore the opinions of scientific editors of international peer-reviewed PT journals about changes in types and quality of articles published during their tenure and about future trends in these publications.

Our study had two parts. The first part was a quantitative, longitudinal, retrospective journal review designed to compare the types and quality of evidence published in PT journals in two time periods: 2010–2012 (to provide a benchmark of quality at the time of the study) and 2000–2002 (a decade earlier, which we considered sufficient time to be able to observe a change). The second part was a quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional survey that explored the opinions of editors of international PT journals regarding the changes in types and quality of articles during their tenure and future trends in these publications. The University of Toronto Ethics Review Board approved this study and the research conforms to the Human and Animal Rights requirements of the February 2006 International Committee of Medical Journal Editors' Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals.

Study sample

For part one, we chose four PT journals—the Journal of Physiotherapy, Physical Therapy, Physiotherapy , and Physiotherapy Canada —based on the following inclusion criteria: ranked on the 2011 ISI Journal Citation Report 23 , peer reviewed, includes “Physical Therapy” or “Physiotherapy” in the journal title, circulates internationally, and published in an English-speaking country.

For part two, we included all known scientific or lead editors of peer-reviewed journals published in English and indexed in CINAHL and Scopus with “Physical Therapy,” “Physical Therapists,” “Physiotherapy,” or “Physiotherapists” in the title who had a valid email address and Internet access. We contacted eligible editors via email and sent our online questionnaire (see Appendix 1 online ) using LimeSurvey (Lime Survey Project Team, Hamburg, Germany).

Evaluation of journal articles

For part one, we accessed all indexed items in all issues of the four journals in both time periods (2000–2002 and 2010–2012) via the University of Toronto Library database. Print issues of Physiotherapy Canada from 2000–2002 were used for our analysis, as these issues were not available online. All items were evaluated using the criteria of the Hedges Project, an instrument designed to assess the clinical applicability and methodological quality of health research articles without grading their quality based on research design alone. 18 , 24 For the purposes of this article, the term item refers to any published material in a journal, including book reviews and editorials, as well as articles.

Our evaluation protocol is set out in Figure 1 and was carried out separately for each time period studied. Each of the five evaluators assessed approximately the same number of articles. Before evaluation began, we trained in the use of the Hedges Project by contacting Miller and colleagues 18 for direction on applying the tool and evaluating 20 articles as a group to increase our collective consistency of assessment. Following the training period, consensus was reached through group evaluation for any articles that an individual evaluator found difficult to assess. A total of 2,166 items ( n =1,162 for 2000–2002, n =1,004 for 2010–2012) were first formatted into four categorical types: (1) original study , (2) review article , (3) case report , and (4) general and miscellaneous . General and miscellaneous items, such as editorials and book reviews, were excluded from further quality assessment. For feasibility purposes, a sample of approximately 60% of items was randomly chosen using the random number generator function in Microsoft Excel 2007 (Microsoft Corp., Redmond, WA), yielding a total of 669 articles. These 669 articles were then assessed for relevance to human health care. Articles of interest to human health care, excluding case reports, were then evaluated further and placed in the appropriate purpose category: etiology ; prognosis ; diagnosis ; treatment, prevention, continuing medical education, or quality improvement ; economics ; clinical prediction guide ; qualitative study ; or something else . Articles in the economics and something else categories were subsequently excluded. The Hedges Project has criteria for each purpose category listing specific requirements needed to receive a “pass” for methodological rigour. As such, the remaining articles were assessed for rigour, receiving either a “pass” or “fail” status. Further information regarding criteria for format categories, purpose categories, and rigour can be found in the study conducted by Miller and colleagues. 18

Evaluation process for journal articles

We made minor assumptions and modifications when applying the Hedges Project tool to article evaluation to reduce both open-ended interpretation of criteria and subjective evaluation of format category, purpose category, and methodological rigour ( Box 2 ).

Assumptions and Modifications Applied to Hedges Project Criteria

COPD=chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Survey of editors

For part two, we recruited editors using a modified Dillman approach: 25 potential participants were contacted on three separate occasions with an invitation to participate in the study by completing a questionnaire. Participation was anonymous, and responses were not linked to the participant in any way. We initially piloted our 33-item questionnaire with two retired editors and then made revisions based on their feedback and on further critique among the authors.

For part one, we defined two different pass rates (see Figure 1 ): overall pass rate , defined as the number of articles in the ∼60% random sample for each time period that passed, and specific pass rate , defined as the number of articles evaluated for methodological rigour—the final step of the Hedges Project criteria—that passed for that time period. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to evaluate and compare the types and quality of literature published in PT journals between the two time periods using SPSS version 20 (IBM Corp. Armonk, NY). Nominal scale data were calculated as percentages and frequencies for format category, purpose category, and pass rate for each time period. We used Fisher's Exact Test (2-tailed), with α set at 0.05 and β at 0.2, to determine the statistical significance of differences in format categories and methodological rigour between the two time periods; to compare purpose categories, α was set at 0.01.

For part two, editor responses were evaluated using descriptive statistics. Nominal and ordinal data were calculated as percentages and frequencies.

Format categories and interest to human health care

Table 1 presents the number of items classified per time period by journal title. Figure 2 shows the subsequent division of these items into the format categories. In 2000–2002, the highest proportion of items fell into the general and miscellaneous category, with original study the second most frequent; in contrast, these two categories were reversed in 2010–2012. Comparison of format categories between the two time periods revealed a significant increase in the proportion of both original studies ( p <0.001) and review articles ( p =0.002) and a significant decrease in the proportion of general and miscellaneous items ( p <0.001) in 2010–2012 ( Figure 2 ). The majority of our random sample of articles was of interest to human health care (2000–2002: 232/267 [86.9%]; 2010–2012: 362/402 [90.0%]); the difference between time periods was not significant ( p =0.21).

Number of Items Classified by Journals Studied ( n =2,166).

Comparison of format category proportions between the time periods studied ( n =2166). There was a significant increase in the proportion of original studies (2000–2002: 330/1162 [28.4%]; 2010–2012: 513/1004 [51.1%]) and review articles (2000–2002: 60/1162 [5.2%]; 2010–2012: 85/1004 [8.5%]) and a significant decrease in the proportion of general and miscellaneous items in 2010–2012 (2000–2002: 721/1162 [62.0%]; 2010–2012: 343/1004 [34.2%]).

Purpose categories

Figure 3 shows articles that were of interest to human health care divided into purpose categories. In both time periods, the most frequent purpose category was treatment, prevention, continuing medical education, or quality improvement , followed by clinical prediction guide . There was only one item in the economics category, which was therefore excluded as an outlier. Comparison of purpose categories between time periods found no significant differences in their proportions within each time period (see Figure 3 ; all p values >0.10).

Comparison of Purpose Category Proportions Between the Studied Time Periods ( n =522). No differences in proportions were found for any purpose category when compared between the two time periods (all p values>0.10).

For all purpose category articles that we evaluated for rigour, the specific pass rate was 47.1% (89/189) for 2000–2002 and 54.8% (171/312) for 2010–2012 (see Figure 4 ; p =0.10). A more detailed analysis found no difference between time periods in the specific pass rate for any of the purpose categories (all p values >0.30). In contrast, the overall pass rate was 33.3% in 2000–2002 and 42.5% in 2010–2012, representing a significant increase over time ( Figure 4 ; p =0.019). Further analysis showed that the increase in overall pass rate of review articles was significant (2000–2002: 7/267 [2.6%]; 2010–2012: 28/402 [7.0%]; p =0.013). However, the overall pass rate of original studies was not significantly different between time periods (2000–2002: 82/267 [30.7%]; 2010–2012: 143/402 [35.6%]; p =0.21).

Overall Pass Rate ( n =669) and Specific Pass Rate ( n =501) Compared Between the Two Time Periods.

Survey results

Of the 36 questionnaires sent, 15 were returned; data from one questionnaire were not usable, leaving 14 responses for analysis. All editors were trained physical therapists. The majority had at least 4 years' experience as an editor ( n =9, 64%) and a current education level of “PhD” or “post-doctoral” ( n =12, 86%).

All editors ( n =14, 100%) reported that the number of submissions to their journal had increased during their appointment ( n =14, 100%). The majority believed that there had been a change in the types of manuscripts submitted ( n =9, 64%), that the number of studies published had increased during their tenure ( n =11, 79%), and that the quality of publications had improved ( n =13, 93%). Editors believed systematic reviews ( n =5, 36%), “other” designs (including qualitative) ( n =3, 21%), and RCTs ( n =2, 14%) had increased the most, while narrative reviews ( n =7, 50%) had decreased the most.

Editors identified inadequate funding for PT research ( n =13, 93%) and researchers' preference of submitting higher quality studies to non-PT journals ( n =11, 71%) as barriers to improving the quality of publications.

The majority of editors predicted a continuing increase in the number of PT journals ( n =9, 64%) and the number of submissions to PT journals ( n =14, 100%) in the future. They identified systematic reviews ( n =14, 100%) and RCTs ( n =12, 86%) as the two research designs most likely to increase in the future. Finally, editors considered systematic reviews ( n =14, 100%) and RCTs ( n =12, 86%) as most beneficial to future clinical decision-making.

This was the first study to describe the types and quality of evidence published in PT journals and to compare two time periods by applying the Hedges Project criteria and seeking the opinions of editors. We found that the overall rigour of articles, assessed by the criteria of the Hedges Project, was greater in 2010–2012 than in 2000–2002; that a greater proportion of original studies and review articles were published in 2010–2012; and that almost all editors considered the quality of publications to have increased in recent years.

There has recently been greater emphasis on EBP in the PT profession, with the research community providing more robust evidence to support professional practice. This shift toward EBP has likely produced stronger research designs, increased adherence to scientifically sound criteria, and emphasized knowledge translation. These factors, in addition to an increase in the proportion of original studies and review articles and a decrease in general and miscellaneous items from 2000–2002 to 2010–2012, may have contributed to the increase in overall pass rate in 2010–2012.

The pass rate calculation of Miller and colleagues 18 is comparable to our specific pass rate rather than our overall pass rate . For the articles they evaluated for rigour, Miller and colleagues 18 reported a 66% pass rate, higher than the 47% and 55% pass rates we found for articles published in 2000–2002 and 2010–2012, respectively. These rates cannot be directly compared due to several differences between the methodology employed by Miller and colleagues 18 and in our study. First, Miller and colleagues 18 analyzed articles published in 2000–2001; our study included articles from 2000–2002, and our random sample of approximately 60% of items yielded a larger number of articles for evaluation using the Hedges Project ( n =267 vs. n =179). Second, we made assumptions and modified the Hedges Project criteria to reduce ambiguity in format and purpose categories and rigour criteria; thus, the Hedges Project tool we used differed slightly from the one used by Miller and colleagues. 18 Third, Miller and colleagues 18 took consecutive issues of the four chosen PT journals for analysis, whereas we used a random sample from all issues published in 2000–2002. Finally, Miller and colleagues 18 used only one reviewer to identify the format and purpose categories and assess for rigour, whereas we used five evaluators.

In addition to using a quantitative measure that considered quality, we supplemented our results by seeking the opinions of editors. The majority of editors reported that the quality of articles has increased in recent years, which supports our findings regarding publication quality improvement as defined by the Hedges Project criteria. Editors also reported an increase in the number of submissions and predicted an increase in the number of journals and article submissions in the future. Similarly, Frontera and colleagues, 26 reporting on editors' opinions in the field of physical and rehabilitation medicine, stated that both the amount of research and the number of articles submitted for review are increasing and that there will be a need for more journals in the future.

In terms of study design, the editors surveyed in our study saw the greatest increase in systematic reviews, RCTs, and “other” methodologies, including qualitative studies. This finding cannot be directly compared with our findings using the Hedges Project criteria, as the Hedges Project did not allow us to look specifically at different study designs. In agreement with our findings, an editorial by Durward 27 regarding the journal Physiotherapy Research International reported that several qualitative studies have been published since the journal's first publication in 1996. In 2002, Refshauge, 17 also discussing Physiotherapy Research International , noted that more RCTs have been included since the journal's first publication. In accordance with our findings, Crosbie 28 suggested that there are now more systematic reviews published; he also suggested that future PT literature will include more RCTs and that systematic reviews will replace literature reviews. 28

Future studies including rehabilitation journals in addition to PT journals would improve power and sensitivity in evaluating article quality in rehabilitation. It may also be worthwhile to explore possible reasons behind the change observed in types and quality of articles.

This study has several limitations. While the Hedges Project is a useful tool in that it is standardized and allows for evaluation of a variety of research designs, some of its criteria are vague and less applicable to PT than to other health care professions. In addition, articles from only four journals were evaluated for rigour. This decreases our ability to generalize our results to other PT and rehabilitation journals. Furthermore, five evaluators were used to apply the Hedges Project criteria; while a large number of evaluators can leave room for discrepancy and variance, we minimized this possibility by training with the Hedges Project criteria before assessment and by consulting members of the group to reach a consensus in cases of uncertainty.

There was an improvement in the quality of articles from 2000–2002 to 2010–2012. There was an increase in the proportion of original studies and review articles between those time periods. According to editors, this reflects an increase in RCTs and systematic reviews. Collectively, these findings imply a shift in PT journals toward higher quality, evidence-based research. Physical therapists can rely on PT journals as one source to inform their clinical practice but must still evaluate each article to determine its efficacy for clinical decision-making.

Key messages

What is already known on this topic.

There has been an increase in published PT literature over the years, as well as a change in the types of publications. A variety of tools have been used to assess quality of literature in PT and rehabilitation journals including the Hedges Project.

What this study adds

The growth in PT literature over the years has been associated with an increase in quality over the last decade. There was in increase in the proportion of original studies and review articles in that time period.

Supplementary Material

Physiotherapy Canada 2014; 66(4);382–391; doi:10.3138/ptc.2013-67