title: Addressing ethical considerations and authors' conflict of interest disclosure in medical journals in Iran.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine how ethical approval and competing interests are addressed by medical journals in Iran. In a cross-sectional study, 151 journals accredited by the Publications Commission of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education were reviewed. Data collection was carried out by assessing journal guidelines and conducting structured phone interviews with journal managers, focusing on how ethical considerations and conflicts of interest (COI) are addressed. Overall, 135 of the 151 journals (89.4 percent) examined some aspect of ethical considerations of submitted articles. Authors were required to disclose their financial sponsors by 98 journals (64.9 percent), while COI disclosure was required by 67 journals (44.4 percent). We conclude that the rate of addressing ethical considerations is not far from ideal, but the requirement for COI disclosure needs more attention.
authors.affiliation: Ethics, Religion and Medicine Research Center, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran.
authors.forename: Akram
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heidari
authors.forename: Seyyed Hassan
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Adeli
authors.forename: Shiva
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mehravaran
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Asghari
mesh_terms: D015706:Bibliometrics; D016265:Conflict of Interest; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D030881:Disclosure / Q000941:ethics*; D035081:Editorial Policies; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000941:ethics*