How to Choose a Research Question for an MD Thesis
A practical framework for turning a clinical interest into a focused, feasible and defensible thesis question.
Medical Writing
Vancouver Referencing: Common Mistakes
The Vancouver errors examiners and reviewers notice most — and how reference managers help you avoid them.
Medical Writing
Vancouver is the most widely used referencing style in medical theses and journals. Small inconsistencies add up and suggest a lack of care.
Numbering out of order
References are numbered in the order they are first cited in the text. Re-using a source uses its original number.
Author list errors
Author names are given as surname followed by initials without full stops (e.g. Sharma RK). Many journals list the first six authors followed by “et al.” — check your journal or university guideline.
Inconsistent journal abbreviations
Use NLM journal title abbreviations consistently (e.g. N Engl J Med, Indian J Med Res).
Missing or wrong details
Check year, volume, issue and page range. Include DOIs where your guideline requires them.
Citing what you have not read
Cite the original source you actually read. Copying a citation from another paper’s reference list can propagate errors.
Use a reference manager
Zotero or Mendeley with a Vancouver style file handles numbering and formatting automatically, and makes late edits far less painful.
This article is for general educational purposes. Always follow your institution’s guidelines and your guide’s advice.