This guide is distilled from the official American Medical Association Manual of Style regulations in an attempt to make it easier to read and reference. Full copies of the AMA Manual are available at the library for in-library use.
If you have a question not covered by this guide, please consult a librarian.
Request a physical copy of the handbook through the Library Catalog.
NOTE: The AMA Manual of Style does not have specific formatting required for font type and size, margins, etc. The guidelines presented here are as provided in the University of Mary Department of Physical Therapy Research Handbook, supplemented with best practices from the APA, Chicago, and MLA styles. Because the AMA guidelines are not standardized, be sure and check with your instructor to learn if they require any specific formatting.
Example: Khatri A, Naeger Murphy N, Wiest P, et al. Community-acquired pyelonephritis in pregnancy caused by KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2015;59(8):4375-4378. doi:10.1128/AAC.00553-15
Beyond the visual formatting of your paper, it is also important to follow the stylistic matters laid out in the AMA Manual of Style. This includes such factors as using headings and capitalizing them appropriately and other text style issues (such as using 'one' vs. '1', or using AM, a.m., or A.M.), placement of page numbers, etc. This is a basic guide on manuscript style, but it is not extensive. See the AMA Manual of Style for more information.
Keep in mind that these guidelines apply to your own writing and in paraphrasing from sources. When you are directly quoting a source, you should follow the formatting used in the original.
Acronyms, abbreviations, and initialisms are discouraged from use, except for well-known and accepted units of measurement and some well-recognized terms.
Numerals (1,2,3, etc.) should always be used rather than spelling numbers out, except when: