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Citation Styles: AMA

AMA Citation Basics

The AMA Manual of Style is the American Medical Association's official guide to writing for publication in science journals.

* References should be numbered consecutively with superscript Arabic numerals in the order in which they are cited in the text.

* Use initials without periods for author names and do not put space between the initials:  Smith IP.

* Abbreviate and italicize journal titles.  See the NLM Journals database for abbreviations.

* If there are more than six authors list only the first three, followed by "et al".

* Titles are in sentence style, not capitalized.

* Use a DOI (digital object identifier) instead of a URL if available.  If a DOI is used you do not need to note the "Accessed on" date.

 

From Cite right: A quick guide to citation styles--MLA, APA, Chicago, the sciences, professions, and more, by Charles Lipson.

Citing References In Text

Cite a passage in text by placing a superscript Arabic numeral following the citation.

Entries in the reference list should be in the same order as they appear in the text.

Examples:

The report1 found that...
As has been noted previously,2
This argument was refuted in another study.3
Other reports4,5confirm these findings. (Note: Two sources are cited.)
"...as has been the conclusion of this author."6 (Note: Use after direct quotation.)
In recent reports1,3-5,9surgical outcomes have been... (Note: Multiple sources cited; not all are consecutive.)

You may cite the same source more than once by using the same endnote number. However, when you repeat a number, you should include a page number, in parentheses, next to the note number.

The data1(p44) disproves the previous assertion...

Citing Books in the Reference List

Author's Last Name First and Middle Initials. Book Title. Edition number (if it is the second edition or later). Publisher’s name; copyright year. Accessed [date]. URL (or DOI, if provided)

Note: There is no punctuation between the author's last name and their first and middle initials

If there are more than six authors list only the first three, followed by "et al".

Book - author:

  1. Katz RV, Warren RC. The Search for the Legacy of the USPHS Syphilis Study at Tuskegee. 2nd ed. Lexington Books; 2011.

Book - editor:

  1. Boylan M, ed. Public Health Policy and Ethics. Kluwer Academic Publishers; 2004

Book - no author:

  1. Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary. 31st ed. Saunders; 2007. 

Book - chapter:

Chapter Author's Last Name First and Middle Initials. Chapter title. Book Authors. Book Title. Volume number and title. Edition number (if it is the second edition or later). Publisher’s name; copyright year. Accessed [date]. URL (or DOI, if provided)

  1. Frumkin H. Urban sprawl and public health. In: Hynes, HP, Lopez, R. Urban Health: Readings in the Social, Built, and Physical Environments of U.S. Cities. Jones and Bartlett Publishers; 2009:11-168.

Citing Articles in the Reference List

Print Journal (even if accessed online):

Author(s). Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year;volume(issue no.):pages. DOI

Note: Be mindful of the lack of spaces between certain information and lack of period after the DOI.

Online Journal:

Author(s). Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title. Publication date. DOI

Article in a print journal:

  1. Narducci E, Waltz A, Gorski K, Leppla L, Donaldson M. The clinical utility of functional performance tests within one-year post-acl reconstruction: a systematic review. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2011;6(4):333-342.

Online article from a database (such as EBSCO):

  1. McConnell R, Islam T, Shankardass K, et al. Childhood incident asthma and traffic-related air pollution at home and school. Environ Health Perspect. 2010;118(7):1021-1026. doi:10.1289/ehp.0901232.

Online article from web site:

  1. Goldstein LB, Bushnell CD, Adams RJ, et al. Guidelines for the Primary Prevention of Stroke. Stroke. 2011;42(2):517 -584.  http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/42/2/517.long.  Accessed February 5, 2012.

Online article from newspaper

  1. Brown, D. Global diabetes rate soars. Washington Post. June 26, 2011. http://www.washingtonpost.com. Accessed March 30, 2012.

 

Citing Web Sites in the Reference List

Author's Last Name First and Middle Initials. Page title. Title of Site. URL (or DOI, if provided). Last Modified [date]. Accessed [date].

 If a DOI is used you do not need to note the "Accessed on" date.

Web site - with DOI

  1. Committee on Infectious Diseases. Recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedules--United States, 2012. Pediatrics. 2012;129(2):385-386. doi:10.1542/peds.2011-3630.

Web site - with URL

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Mother-to-child (perinatal) HIV transmission and prevention.  http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/perinatal/resources/factsheets/perinatal.htm. Last Modified: October 16, 2007. Accessed February 5, 2012.

 

Find the Book

The AMA Manual of Style is the American Medical Association's official guide to writing for publication in science journals.

Online Resources