Image Policy

Image and Figure Integrity Policy
The Journal of Medico Informatics (JoMI) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and ethical practice in the presentation of visual data and scientific imagery. All images, figures, graphs, tables, and illustrations submitted for publication must accurately and faithfully represent the underlying data without misleading alteration, selective enhancement, or inappropriate manipulation. This policy is aligned with internationally recognized standards for image integrity in scholarly publishing, including the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the Council of Science Editors (CSE), and ensures that all visual materials published in JoMI are authentic, properly attributed, reproducible, and scientifically valid.

Originality of Figures and Visual Content
All figures, images, diagrams, graphs, and graphical content submitted to JoMI must be original works created by the submitting authors, unless otherwise explicitly disclosed. The journal requires the use of original illustrations, data visualizations, and scientific diagrams that have been specifically prepared for the submitted manuscript and have not been previously published elsewhere. The reuse of previously published figures is not permitted unless the content is essential to the scientific narrative of the manuscript, proper written permission has been obtained from the original copyright holder, and full attribution is provided in accordance with the applicable licensing terms. Authors must clearly indicate the source and licensing status of any reproduced figure both within the manuscript text and in the corresponding figure legend.

Copyright, Licensing, and Permissions
Authors bear full and sole responsibility for obtaining all necessary permissions for any third-party images, figures, or graphical materials incorporated into their manuscript prior to submission. Where copyrighted visual material is included, authors must secure written permission from the copyright holder, covering rights for both print and electronic publication, and provide appropriate acknowledgment within the manuscript, including in the relevant figure legend. Figures released under open licenses, such as Creative Commons licenses, must be used strictly in accordance with the applicable license terms, and the license type and original source must be clearly cited. JoMI accepts no responsibility for copyright infringement arising from the unauthorized use of third-party visual materials. Any identified violation may result in rejection of the manuscript, post-publication corrective action, or retraction, in accordance with COPE guidelines.

Image Integrity and Prohibited Manipulations
All submitted figures and images must represent the original data accurately and completely. The following practices constitute serious breaches of scientific integrity and are strictly prohibited:
► Fabrication or falsification of data, including the artificial creation or alteration of images to misrepresent experimental results.
► Selective enhancement, adjustment, or suppression of specific regions of an image in a manner that alters the scientific meaning or interpretation of the data.
► Inappropriate duplication of images, including the reuse of the same figure or image to represent different experimental conditions, datasets, or results.
► Image splicing, compositing, or digital morphing that distorts, conceals, or misrepresents the original findings.
► Removal, addition, or rearrangement of elements within an image, including lanes in gel images or signals in microscopy data, without transparent disclosure.
Contrast or brightness adjustments applied selectively or non-uniformly to specific regions of an image.
Limited global adjustments, such as uniform changes to brightness, contrast, or color balance applied equally across the entire image, are permitted only when they do not obscure, eliminate, or misrepresent any information present in the original. All such adjustments must be explicitly disclosed in the figure legend or Methods section. Where images from multiple sources are assembled into a single composite figure, panel boundaries must be clearly delineated using visible dividing lines, and the composite nature of the figure must be disclosed in the legend.

Prohibition of Figure Duplication and Redundant Publication
Authors must not reuse, duplicate, or republish figures across multiple submissions, manuscripts, or publications without explicit disclosure, appropriate citation of the original source, and, where required, written permission from the original publisher or copyright holder. Any form of image duplication, whether within the same manuscript or across different published works, is considered a breach of publication ethics unless transparently disclosed and properly referenced in accordance with COPE guidelines on redundant publication. The journal employs dedicated image screening tools to detect undisclosed duplication, and confirmed instances will be treated as scientific misconduct subject to formal corrective action.

Policy on AI-Generated Visual Content
JoMI does not permit the inclusion of AI-generated images, figures, illustrations, or graphical content in submitted manuscripts, unless the manuscript itself specifically investigates the application of artificial intelligence in image generation or visual data representation. In such cases, all AI-generated content must be clearly identified, fully disclosed, and critically evaluated within the manuscript. AI-generated visual content produced by generative artificial intelligence tools, including but not limited to image synthesis models and large multimodal models, may lack verifiable scientific authenticity, reproducibility, and methodological traceability, and therefore does not meet the evidential standards required for scholarly publication. All visual materials submitted to JoMI must be derived from actual experimental data, empirical observations, or scientifically validated analytical methods, and must be independently reproducible.

Technical Standards for Image Preparation and Submission
All figures submitted to JoMI must meet the technical quality standards required for professional scholarly publication. Specific requirements include the following:
► Resolution: A minimum of 300 dots per inch (DPI) for photographs and color images, and a minimum of 600 DPI for line art and graphical figures, measured at the intended print size.
► File Formats: Accepted formats include TIFF, EPS, PDF, and high-resolution JPEG or PNG files, as specified in the journal's author guidelines.
► Legibility: All text, labels, symbols, scale bars, and annotations within figures must be clearly legible at the intended publication size and must employ terminology consistent with that used in the manuscript body.
► Figure Legends: Each figure must be accompanied by a concise, self-contained legend that clearly describes the content, identifies all components and abbreviations, specifies the source, and states any applicable permissions or licensing information.
► Color and Accessibility: Authors are strongly encouraged to use color-blind-friendly palettes when color is used to convey scientific information. Where color alone distinguishes data categories, an accessible alternative, such as patterns, textures, or direct labels, must also be provided to ensure equitable readability.

Editorial Screening and Independent Verification
All submitted images and figures are subject to mandatory editorial screening and integrity verification, which may include the use of dedicated image analysis software to detect manipulation, duplication, contrast alteration, or other forms of inappropriate post-acquisition processing. The journal reserves the right to request original, unprocessed raw data files or source image files at any stage of the submission, peer review, or post-publication process for independent verification purposes. Authors are required to retain all original data and image files for a minimum of ten years following publication and to make these available upon reasonable request from the editorial office or relevant oversight authorities.

Non-Compliance and Corrective Actions
Manuscripts that do not comply with this policy may be rejected at any stage of the submission or peer review process without further consideration. Where image-related concerns, including manipulation, duplication, or misrepresentation, are identified after publication, JoMI will act in full accordance with COPE guidelines and take appropriate corrective measures. These may include issuing formal corrections or errata, publishing expressions of concern, retracting the article, and notifying the authors' affiliated institutions and relevant funding bodies where the nature or severity of the breach warrants such action.

Commitment to Scientific Integrity and Visual Transparency
This policy reflects JoMI's unwavering commitment to ensuring that all visual content published in the journal is accurate, transparent, reproducible, and trustworthy. By enforcing rigorous and internationally aligned standards for image preparation, manipulation, attribution, and verification, consistent with the guidelines of COPE, ICMJE, and CSE, the journal upholds the credibility, reliability, and long-term integrity of the published scientific record and contributes to the sustained global effort to maintain trust and accountability in scientific communication.