Get your European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
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Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 11 August, 2026
Submitting to European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery guide for authors before peer review, so formatting, structure, and required statements should be right on the first draft rather than repaired during upload. This template sets that structure up for you.
It is a manuscript shell aligned to European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery. It covers front matter, the abstract the journal expects, a body organized to the journal's article types, and a reference list in the journal's required style. Confirm current scope and article types on the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery journal page before you draft.
Prepare the title, authors, affiliations, and ORCID iDs. Write the abstract to the journal's rule and word limit, organize the body to the article type, and apply the required reference style from the first citation. Complete every declaration (ethics, competing interests, funding, data availability) the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery guide for authors lists, and cite figures and tables in order.
The common failure modes are formatting or reference style that does not match the guide for authors, missing required statements, and an incomplete portal checklist. Clear all three against the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery guide for authors before you submit.
The shell mirrors what editorial staff check first: article-type fit, the abstract rules, required declarations, and the journal's reference style. For more detail see the author resources. When your draft is ready, upload it through Editorial Manager.
| Element | European J Cardio-thoracic Surg requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Structured abstract required for Original Articles, Meta-Analyses, Review Articles, and Special Reports: 250 words maximum. Mandatory sections: Objectives (describe the problem addressed in the study and its purpose), Methods (explain how the study was performed), Results (describe the main findings in numbers with specific data and their statistical significance, if possible), Conclusions (contain the main conclusion of the study, but no discussion). Reference citations not allowed. Must be factual and free of abbreviations except SI units. Must follow the PICO process. No abstract required for: Surgical Technique, Rapid Communications, Images in Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, Surgeons' Notebook, Residents' Corner, Clinical Trial Corner, Editorials, Great Debate Articles, Commentaries, Data Capsules, and In Memoriam Articles |
| Main text | Word counts include abstract, keywords, main text, figure and video legends, and tables. By article type: Original Articles: 4,500 words maximum; Meta-Analyses: 6,500 words maximum; Review Articles and Special Reports: 6,500 words maximum; Surgical Technique Articles: 1,000 words maximum; Rapid Communications: 1,000 words maximum; Images in Cardio-Thoracic Surgery: 50 words maximum (for legend); Surgeons' Notebook, Residents' Corner, Clinical Trial Corner: 1,000 words maximum; Editorials: 1,500 words maximum; Great Debate Articles: 5,000 words maximum; Commentaries: 1,000 words maximum; Data Capsules: 350 words maximum; In Memoriam Articles: 3,000 words maximum. Manuscripts must not exceed word limits by more than 40% at initial submission |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | 3-6 keywords required for subject indexing. Should be taken from those recommended by the US National Library of Medicine's Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) browser list |
| References | AMA Manual of Style (American Medical Association). References numbered in order of appearance in text (Arabic numerals in parentheses), listed numerically in reference list. Journal titles and author initials abbreviated and punctuated according to PubMed. For references with more than six authors, first 3 authors listed followed by et al |
| Peer review | Single-blind peer review. Reviewers know the identity of authors, but authors do not know the identity of reviewers. Manuscripts are sent to two independent reviewers and may also be sent for statistical review |
| Submission | www.editorialmanager.com/ejcts/default.aspx |
Read the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery guide for authors once before drafting and once before upload. Draft the abstract after results are stable. Set the reference style before adding citations. Keep a cover letter that states your contribution and fit to European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery in under a page.
Skim two or three recent European J Cardio-thoracic Surg papers to calibrate depth and figure style. Make the novelty clear in the first two pages. Deposit data and code when the policy on the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through Editorial Manager.