Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

General Questions

1. Is Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD) available in hard-copy format?

   PCD is available online only, and we have no plans to publish a print edition of the journal. As a courtesy to our readers, we offer a PDF file for each article, which can be downloaded and printed.

2. Can you answer any questions I have about a health problem or condition? Can you give medical advice?

   PCD cannot offer medical advice, nor do we provide materials offering medical advice. We publish peer-reviewed articles of interest to public health researchers and practitioners. If you would like more information on a specific problem or condition, please visit the homepage for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at www.cdc.gov or call the CDC information number at 1-800-232-4636.

3. Do you offer materials on health problems or conditions for distribution?

   PCD does not offer materials for distribution other than the articles, which are available in PDF format. Visit www.cdc.gov for more information on CDC program areas.

4. Is there a subscription cost?

   The journal is available free of charge. You do not need to be a subscriber to have free access to the journal.

5. Is the cover available for print?

   The cover is not available for print.

6. Can I download the entire issue as one PDF file?

   No. Each article is offered as a separate PDF file.

7. When is the journal published?

   In January 2012, Preventing Chronic Disease will begin publishing articles weekly.

8. Where is the journal indexed?

   The journal is indexed with PubMed/MEDLINE and PubMed Central (PMC). We are also listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).

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For Authors

1. How do I submit a manuscript?

   Follow the instructions available from the “How to Submit a Manuscript” link on this Web site. Be sure first to follow the Manuscript Requirements in the “For Authors” section.

2. How do I know whether my manuscript fits within your journal's scope of interests?

   PCD welcomes inquiries from authors to determine the suitability of a manuscript for PCD. Make sure your inquiry includes the following information:

   • Article title
   • Type of article
   • Abstract (300 words or less) with the following information:
     • Study/Intervention/Project description
     • Dates when study was conducted
     • Dates when data were collected
     • Research methods and data analyses
     • Findings
     • Implications for public health practice

   Submit inquiries to the Editor in Chief at PCDeditor@cdc.gov for consideration.

3. How do I submit an Announcement or Letter to the Editor to your journal?

   Letters to the Editor are submitted in the same way as other manuscripts. They must follow the same guidelines listed in Manuscript Requirements, have the correct word count, and be submitted online through Manuscript Central. This information may be found under the “For Authors” section of our Web site.

   PCD publishes brief announcements (25 to 75 words) of events of interest to our readers. In this section, we also include information (no more than 100 words) about upcoming conferences related to the prevention of chronic disease. Announcements should list the topics to be covered during the conference and may refer readers to a Web site with a full description of conference activities. These announcements will be put on our Web site within 2 weeks of approval for publication. Send all announcement requests to pcdeditor@cdc.gov.

4. How long does it take for a decision to be made on my manuscript?

   Time to first decision varies greatly for each manuscript. However, our average time from submission to first decision is 6 to 8 weeks.

5. Do I need to send copies of my article for indexing?

   No. PCD will submit your article for indexing in PubMed and PubMed Central. The PMID is normally available 24 hours after publication; the PMCID is normally available 2 weeks after publication.

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For Peer Reviewers

1. How do I become a peer reviewer?

   You may become a peer reviewer by submitting your curriculum vitae or resume to pcdeditor@cdc.gov. Please include a list of topics you would be interested in reviewing.

2. How/when will I be selected to review a manuscript?

   Peer reviewers are selected on the basis of types of manuscripts that we receive. If a manuscript arrives that matches your background and topics of interest, then we will contact you. We will try not to ask you to review more than two manuscripts per year.

3. How detailed does my review have to be?

   We ask reviewers to give detailed comments (with references whenever possible) that would help authors to improve their papers and PCD editors to decide whether or not to publish.

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Subscriptions

1. How do I subscribe?

   You may subscribe for free by following the instructions at this link: http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/subscriptions/index.htm.

2. Is there a subscription cost?

   The journal is available free of charge. You do not need to be a subscriber to have free access to the journal.

3. What is included in my subscription?

   You will receive an e-mail containing the Table of Contents when each issue is available.

4. I'm having trouble subscribing. What do I do?

   If you are having trouble subscribing, please send an email to pcdeditor@cdc.gov and we will address your problem in a timely manner.

5. How do I subscribe to PCD RSS feeds?

   For instructions on subscribing to RSS feeds, please visit the PCD RSS Feed Instructions page. If you already have a RSS reader installed, you may visit http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/rss/pcd.xml to subscribe directly.

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