Ethical Considerations
AAVS is committed to the highest standards of research integrity and publication ethics, following guidelines from COPE, ICMJE, and the World Medical Association.
1. Human Research Ethics
All studies involving human participants must adhere to the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Ethical approval from an institutional review board must be clearly stated.
Written informed consent is mandatory for participants, especially when identifiable data or images are used.
2. Animal Research Ethics
Studies involving animals must follow recognized international standards of welfare.
Approval from an accredited animal ethics committee must be documented.
3. Authorship Standards
Authorship must reflect significant intellectual contribution to the study.
All authors must approve the final manuscript.
Guest, honorary, and ghost authorship are prohibited.
4. Conflicts of Interest
All financial and non-financial conflicts must be disclosed transparently.
5. Misconduct and Data Integrity
Fabrication, falsification, image manipulation, duplicate publication, and undisclosed AI-generated content are strictly forbidden.
Suspected misconduct will be investigated according to COPE procedures.
6. Use of AI Tools
Authors must disclose any use of AI tools for language enhancement.
AI must not generate data, results, or scientific interpretations.
7. Reviewer Responsibilities
Reviews must be objective, confidential, and free of conflicts of interest.