Conflict of Interest Policy

Maintaining credibility and scientific integrity in academic publishing depends on the transparent disclosure and ethical management of conflicts of interest by all stakeholders. The Cardiovascular Academy Society considers it a fundamental responsibility to establish a publishing environment based on impartiality, independence, and academic honesty in its official journal.

Role of the Association
The Association acknowledges that identifying, disclosing, and properly managing conflicts of interest is a shared responsibility among all parties involved (authors, reviewers, and editors). In this context, the Association:

- Ensures that the conflict of interest policy in its journal aligns with international guidelines published by ICMJE and COPE.
- Requires that conflict of interest disclosure forms be accessible on the journal’s website and that such disclosures are clearly included in all published articles.
- Oversees that editorial processes are conducted transparently and free from any conflict of interest.
- Encourages the assignment of editorial and review responsibilities to individuals who have no relevant conflicts to minimize bias.
- Expects corrective actions to be taken in accordance with COPE guidelines in cases of undisclosed or newly emerged conflicts of interest.

The primary objective of the Association is to ensure that scientific evaluation is based solely on content quality and that the influence of potential biases is eliminated.

Expectations for Authors
The Association expects authors to provide full and transparent disclosures on the following points:

- Any circumstances that may create a conflict of interest during the design, execution, analysis, writing, or publication of the article.
- All financial (e.g., funding, consulting fees, sponsorship, royalties, stock ownership) and non-financial (e.g., personal relationships, academic rivalry, intellectual disagreements) interests.
- All project support, grants, and funding sources received within the scope of the study.
- Completion and submission of the ICMJE Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form along with manuscript submission.
- Inclusion of a clear conflict of interest statement at the end of the final published version of the article.
- Confirmation that any sponsorship agreement does not restrict the author’s access to data, ability to conduct independent analysis, or decision to publish.

Expectations for Reviewers
The journal implements a double-blind peer review system and expects reviewers to remain free from any conflicts of interest during the evaluation process:

- Reviewers who have a potential conflict of interest related to the author(s), institution(s), or subject matter must immediately inform the editorial office.
- Potential conflicts may include recent collaborations, financial relationships, personal ties, competitive circumstances, or ideological disagreements.
- Reviewers with a conflict of interest must withdraw from the review process and not participate in any part of the manuscript evaluation.

Expectations for Editors
To ensure editorial decisions are made independently and reliably, editors are required to avoid any conflicts of interest:

- Editors must disclose any personal, institutional, or financial interests related to a manuscript under review and must recuse themselves from handling such submissions.
- Editors must remain independent from the editorial processes of manuscripts authored by themselves or by individuals and institutions with whom they have close ties.
- Manuscripts submitted by editorial board members or the editor-in-chief must be handled by a different editor, in accordance with principles of objectivity and confidentiality.
- Editors should not involve reviewers who are known to have a conflict of interest with the manuscript.
- All editorial decisions must be documented in compliance with ICMJE and COPE principles and must be available for disclosure to relevant parties when necessary.