Authors

• RAPM now requests that authors use reporting guidelines.
• Write clearly and concisely, with your reader in mind.
• Check all references.
• Refer to the RAPM Manuscript Template for accurate formatting of manuscripts.
• For instructions on how to present your data, please see RAPM‘s Standardized Approach to Data Presentation or watch our guide to data presentation below.
• For instructions on how to review a manuscript for RAPM, please see the journal’s guide for reviewers.
• We suggest that you upload any figures or images as .TIFF or .PDF files to ensure that they appear clearly when published.
• While you must explicitly state in your manuscript that you received patient consent, you are not required to upload a copy of any patient consent forms with your submission.

• Manuscript Preparation
• Formatting your paper and references
• Editorial Policies
• Patient Consent Forms
• License Forms
• Peer Review
• Submission and Production Processes
• RAPM Manuscript Template

• All trials must have been prospectively registered before the date on which patient enrollment began.
• All trials must be registered with a primary national trial registry such as the United States’ ClinicalTrials.gov or the European Union’s EudraCT. If you do not know whether the registry to which you have submitted your work qualifies, a list of qualified national registries can be found on the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform.
• Your registration number and a link to your registration documents must be included in your manuscript. You must also explicitly state the date on which patient enrollment began.

• All animal studies must have approved protocols that conform to sufficient animal care and use guidelines, according to Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, NIH Publication 86-23, or European or national guidelines.
• Sex, age/body weight, species, and source of animals must be reported.
• The number of animals required for each study should be provided in the methods, and group size should be justified, such as by performing power analysis.
• Both male and female animals are highly recommended, but not required, in all experimental designs. The initiative from the National Institutes of Health, NIH, now requires that sex be considered a biological variable for all experiments, including animal studies. (https://orwh.od.nih.gov/sex-gender/nih-policy-sex-biological-variable).
• Animal behavioral studies should report if randomization and blinding (e.g., drug assignment, animal conditions, genotype) procedures are performed.

• Original research
• Case report
• Brief technical report
• Review
• Special article (Typically Commissioned)
• Editorial
• Daring discourse
• Book review
• Letter
• Invited reply letter
• Research report
• Education article
• Infographic
• Pain palette

• What is already known on this topic – summarise the state of scientific knowledge on this subject before you did your study and why this study needed to be done • What this study adds – summarise what we now know as a result of this study that we did not know before • How this study might affect research, practice, or policy – summarise the implications of this study This will be published as a summary box after the abstract in the final published article.

• Name of registry • Registration number • Date of prospective registration • Date of first patient enrollment • Link to the trial’s registration documents Manuscripts on clinical trials will be returned to you without the above information.

• You must include the phrase “a randomized clinical trial” in the subtitle of your manuscript. • You must explicitly state the date on which patient enrollment began and provide your trial registration number and a link to your registration documents in the manuscript. • You must follow the CONSORT checklist and include the CONSORT flow diagram as a figure.

• Introduction Briefly summarize why this case demands review.
• Case Report Provide a statement that the patient, next-of-kin, or legal guardian approved reporting the case(s). Provide sufficient details of the patient case study to allow readers to understand the decision-making used in providing care.
• Discussion Emphasize new and important insights that were gained from this case and conclusions that follow from them. Case Reports should not extensively review all literature related to the topic, but rather emphasize how the case fundamentally adds to our existing knowledge.

• Background/Importance Please state the overall importance to patient care or public health.
• Objective Describe the exact purpose of the review including the exact patient population, intervention and outcomes studied.
• Evidence Review Describe the methodology of the review including the sources of information used, years included, eligibility criteria, and what methods were used to grade the quality of the evidence. An example can be found here.
• Findings Provide an overview of the number of studies included, article types (RCT, prospective observational), and quality of evidence. Provide a high level summary of the main findings. An example can be found here.
• Conclusions Provide an answer to the research question listed in the objectives.

Additional Requirements for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses

• What is already known on this topic – summarise the state of scientific knowledge on this subject before you did your study and why this study needed to be done
• What this study adds – summarise what we now know as a result of this study that we did not know before
• How this study might affect research, practice or policy – summarise the implications of this study

• Full name and highest degree of Author(s) (eg, John G. Smith, MD)
• Institutional Department (eg, Department of Anesthesiology)
• Name of Institution (eg, Virginia Mason Medical Center)
• City and State, or, in the case of submissions from outside the United States, City and Country (eg, Seattle, Washington; Dublin, Ireland)

• Full name and highest degree of Author(s) (eg, John G. Smith, MD)
• Institutional Department (eg, Department of Anesthesiology)

• Name of Institution (eg, Virginia Mason Medical Center)
• City and State, or, in the case of submissions from outside the United States, City and Country (eg, Seattle, Washington; Dublin, Ireland)

• The journal editor, an editorial board member or a learned society may wish to organise a meeting, sponsorship may be sought and the proceedings published as a supplement.
• The journal editor, editorial board member or learned society may wish to commission a supplement on a particular theme or topic. Again, sponsorship may be sought.
• BMJ Publishing Group itself may have proposals for supplements where sponsorship may be necessary.
• A sponsoring organisation, often a pharmaceutical company or a charitable foundation, that wishes to arrange a meeting, the proceedings of which will be published as a supplement.

• Journal in which you would like the supplement published
• Title of supplement and/or meeting on which it is based
• Date of meeting on which it is based
• Proposed table of contents with provisional article titles and proposed authors
• An indication of whether authors have agreed to participate
• Sponsor information including any relevant deadlines
• An indication of the expected length of each paper Guest Editor proposals if appropriate

• Personal Narratives: Share your personal journey with pain, whether as a patient, caregiver, or healthcare provider. Reflect on the challenges, triumphs, and insights gained from navigating pain experiences.
• Creative Writing: Express your experiences, emotions, and perspectives on pain through poetry, short stories, essays, or other literary forms. Use language as a medium to evoke empathy, insight, and understanding.
• Artistic Expressions: Showcase visual artwork, photography, or multimedia pieces that capture the essence of pain, its impact on individuals and communities, and the pathways to healing and resilience.
• Critical Reflections: Offer scholarly or reflective essays that examine the intersection of pain management, medical practice, and the humanities. Explore topics such as the role of narrative medicine, the ethics of pain treatment, or the cultural dimensions of pain perception.