Conflict of Interest Policy

Conflict of Interest Policy

The Annals of Dentistry, University of Malaya (Ann Dent UM) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and objectivity in scholarly publishing. To uphold the credibility of the scientific record, all individuals involved in the publication process—including authors, reviewers, editors, and members of the Editorial Board—are required to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that may influence their professional judgment.

A conflict of interest may arise when personal, financial, professional, institutional, or academic relationships have the potential to affect the conduct, evaluation, interpretation, or publication of scholarly work. Such relationships do not necessarily constitute misconduct; however, they should be disclosed to ensure transparency and allow informed editorial decisions.

Examples of potential conflicts of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Employment, consultancies, advisory roles, or leadership positions;
• Research grants, sponsorships, or other sources of funding;
• Honoraria, speaker fees, or paid expert testimony;
• Ownership of stocks, shares, patents, or intellectual property rights;
• Personal relationships or close professional associations;
• Academic rivalry, competition, or strongly held intellectual positions that may affect objectivity.

Authors are required to disclose all relevant conflicts of interest and sources of financial support at the time of manuscript submission. Where no conflicts exist, authors should provide a statement declaring that they have no competing interests to disclose.

Editors and reviewers must recuse themselves from handling or evaluating manuscripts in which a conflict of interest may compromise, or reasonably be perceived to compromise, their impartiality.

The journal encourages authors to follow the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and to complete the relevant disclosure forms where appropriate. The Editorial Board reserves the right to request additional information regarding potential conflicts of interest and to determine whether disclosed relationships may affect the publication process.