The Nepal Journal of Dermatology, Venereology & Leprology (NJDVL) is a scientific biomedical journal, published by the Society of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists of Nepal (SODVELON). It aims to publish and disseminate information on all aspects of the diagnosis and management of skin diseases, and information on scientific research related to dermatology. The journal accepts manuscripts for original articles, reviews, and case reports.
The aim of NJDVL is to increase the visibility and ease of use of open-access scientific and scholarly articles that promote in increased usage and bring positive impact in medical knowledge and research activities. Considering these facts, NJDVL grants permission to read, copy, print, download, distribute, search, or link to the full texts of these articles, which are available online (https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NJDVL) freely. At present, authors do not have to pay for submission, processing, or publication of manuscripts in NJDVL
The Editorial Process of NJDVL follows the principles and publishing ethics guidelines ofthe International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICJME), Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), and Open Access Scholarly Publishing Association ( OASPA)
The submitted manuscripts are duly acknowledged and initially reviewed for possible publication by the Editors with the understanding that they are being submitted only to the NJDVL and have not been published, simultaneously submitted, or accepted for publication elsewhere.
All manuscripts submitted to the Nepal Journal of Dermatology, Venereology & Leprology (NJDVL) are evaluated based on their originality, scientific rigor, clinical relevance, and adherence to ethical research standards. Priority is given to original research articles that contribute novel insights to the field of dermatology, venereology, or leprology.
Editorial Screening and Initial Assessment
Upon submission, manuscripts undergo a preliminary review by the Editorial Board to assess:
Manuscripts deemed suitable are forwarded for external peer review. Submissions that do not meet minimum standards may be desk rejected.
Selection of Peer Reviewers
External peer reviewers are selected based on:
Double-Blind Peer Review
NJDVL follows a double-blind peer review process, in which:
Reviewers do not know the identity of the authors
The authors do not know the identity of the reviewers
Each manuscript is typically reviewed by two or more independent experts. Reviewers are asked to assess:
Based on reviewer feedback, the editorial team may issue one of the following decisions:
Authors are expected to respond to reviewer comments in a point-by-point format and resubmit within a given time frame. Revised manuscripts may be sent back to reviewers for re-evaluation.
Authors must respond to reviewer comments in a point-by-point format and submit a revised manuscript with all changes clearly marked. The revision is reviewed by the editor and, when necessary, sent back to the original reviewers for re-evaluation. Further revisions may be requested before final acceptance. Timely and clear responses ensure an efficient and transparent review process.
NJDVL is committed to a rapid and efficient peer review process, aiming to provide an initial decision within 6–8 weeks and final acceptance to publication within 3 months ± 30 days.
The Editor-in-Chief holds the final authority to accept or reject any manuscript, irrespective of reviewer recommendations, based on the overall merit, novelty, and alignment with the journal’s scope.
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.
Our work is also licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License CC-BY-4.0.
Authors do not have to pay at any stage of submission, processing or publication of manuscripts in NJDVL.
The journal is presently indexed/archived at Nepal Journal Online (NEPJOL), Directory of Open Access Journals(DOAJ), Index Copernicus International ( ICI), World of Journal, Google Scholar, Crossref, J-Gate, and CABI
Society of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists of Nepal (SODVELON)
NJDVL is supported by SODVELON
Our Journal is permanently archived on (https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NJDVL
Withdrawing a paper during peer review or during the production process after acceptance, but before publication, is an uncommon event that is not considered scientifically good, but must be done only in exceptional cases. Withdrawal requests from the author will not be accepted after the galley copy /proofreading is received from the author before publication. Authors need to fill out an “Article withdrawal form” and send back the signed withdrawal form to the editorial office, after which the withdrawal process is completed.
Manuscripts are declined if the author does not respond to editorial comments after several reminders, after a period of 1 month automatically, or after a peer reviewer decision to decline, or submission is not suitable for the Journal
Editors
Editors should be responsible for managing the review process and have the right to decline any submission in case of any conflict of interest. They should not have any direct personal and/or financial conflicts with their assigned manuscripts.
Reviewers
Reviewers should be responsible to decline the review process if any substantial conflicts of interest exist. Reviewers need to disclose a conflict of interest statement in the reviewer’s form sent from the editorial office. In case of any doubt, they should consult the Editor to make a decision regarding the review process.
Authors
According to the general publication, only the researchers who contributed to the work in a real sense should be considered as authors, as per the ICJME (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) recommendation. Authors should be responsible for disclosing all the personal and financial relationships that might bias their work. Financial relationships such as employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, and paid expert testimony can be classified as the most easily identifiable conflicts-of-interest and the most likely to undermine the credibility of the journal.
All submitted manuscripts are scrutinized for plagiarism. The editorial board will take action on the basis of the degree of plagiarism, whether to accept if the author modifies the plagiarized content into a unique one after a warning from the editorial team, or to reject the manuscript.
Permission from the person or copyright holder should be taken for any photograph, figure, and graphic materials reproduced from another source, and acknowledge anyone’s view, idea, or findings.
Authorship
NJDVL adheres to the policy published and regularly updated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). All authors should meet all four following criteria for authorship, and all who meet the four criteria should be identified as authors.
The individuals who had contributed to the study but do not meet all the above four criteria of authorship should be acknowledged in the acknowledgement section.
Acquisition of funding, the collection of data, or general supervision of the research itself does not account for authorship.
Ethical approval of research
All research articles submitted should include a letter from the Institutional Review Board/committee stating that the study obtained ethics approval.
Experimental research on humans or any animals must comply with and conform to institutional, national, or international Good Clinical Practice guidelines. For a drug trial, mandatory clinical trial registration is a prerequisite for publication.
Patient consent and confidentiality
If an article contains personal medical information, including x-rays, photos, etc. The patient’s consent is necessary for the publication of such details. If consent cannot be obtained for whatever reason, then NJDVL will anonymize the details as much as possible.
Post-publication discussions and corrections
We are committed to maintaining the integrity of the scientific record and thoroughly investigating concerns that are directly raised with us by authors and readers
Privacy
All the personal details entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.
Policy on the Use of Generative AI in Scientific Writing and Publishing
As generative AI (GenAI) technologies such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Bing, and others continue to evolve and become integrated into the research and publication ecosystem, NJDVL encourages transparency and responsible use of these tools.
We align with global publishing standards (e.g., Elsevier, WAME, ICMJE) and Scopus recommendations regarding the use of AI in scholarly communication.
Disclosure Required
Please include a clear statement under the Acknowledgements or Methods section, for example: “The authors used ChatGPT (OpenAI) for language assistance in the preparation of the manuscript draft. The final content was reviewed and approved by the authors.
Author Responsibility
AI tools cannot be listed as authors. All listed authors are responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the content, including content generated or assisted by AI tools.
Prohibited Use
AI tools must not be used for:
For Editors and Reviewers
AI Use in Editorial Processes
Editors or reviewers who use AI tools for summarizing content or assessing clarity must not use them to make final editorial decisions or evaluate scientific validity.
Confidentiality and Integrity
Editors and reviewers must never input confidential manuscript content into public AI tools that store data or use it for model training, as this may violate author confidentiality.
NJDVL is committed to upholding the highest standards of editorial ethics and transparency. Complaints related to content, editorial decisions, ethical issues, delays, or data privacy can be submitted via email to: njdvl.sodvelon@gmail.com
All complaints will be acknowledged within 7 working days and resolved within 4 weeks, unless further investigation is required. Unresolved issues may be escalated to SODVELON or an appropriate oversight body.
The Publisher, Society of Dermatologist, Venereologists and Leprologists of Nepal and Editors cannot be held responsible for errors or any consequences arising from the use of information contained in this journal; the views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Publisher, Society of Dermatologist, Venereologist and Leprologist of Nepal and Editors, neither does the publication of advertisements constitute any endorsement by the Publisher, Society of Dermatologists, Venereologist and Leprologist of Nepal and Editors of the products advertised. The journal does not currently use AI tools for peer review or decision-making. If such tools are used in the future (e.g., for plagiarism detection or language screening), they will be transparently disclosed on the journal’s platform.
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