We require authors to declare all competing interests in relation to their work. Competing interests may be financial or non-financial. The ICMJE has developed a Form for Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest to facilitate and standardize authors’ disclosures. Our journals are proud to adhere to the ICMJE guidelines, and prior to the publication of a manuscript, all authors will have to provide an individual ICMJE form for that respective manuscript. The final manuscript pdf will include an author statement on the conflicts of interest of the co-authors as reported in the ICMJE form provided to the Editorial Office. In this section, provenance and peer review are also noted.

Detailed peer review is an essential aspect of scholarly publishing. Our journals predominantly adhere to double-blind (all except Pneumon) peer review by external experts as per our peer review policy. During peer review, the reviewers are requested to note if they have identified the authors of the manuscript and if they perceive that they may have a potential conflict of interest with the manuscript. The final manuscript, if accepted, will also note if the peer review has been performed externally or internally.

Manuscripts in which the Editor in Chief perceives that they may have a conflict of interest are handled by other editorial board members. Members of the editorial board with potential conflicts of interest with regard to a manuscript are excluded from reviewing or evaluating that manuscript. Manuscripts requested by the Editor in Chief are noted as "Commissioned," and this is also noted in the final manuscript pdf. Manuscripts written by members of the editorial board still undergo the double-blind peer review process, and the author-editor is requested, as with all authors, to complete an ICMJE conflict of interest form. The final manuscript pdf will include an author statement on the conflicts of interest. In this section of the pdf, article provenance and peer review are also noted.