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Physical Therapy

A guide to information and resources for Doctor of Physical Therapy students

AMA Manual of Style

Physical Therapy follows AMA Style for writing. Follow the AMA Manual of Style for paper setup, writing, and citation formatting.

Christian SL, Iverson C, Flanagin A, et al. AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors. 11th ed. Oxford University Press; 2020.

Important Reminders

  • AMA uses endnotes
  • References are numbered in consecutive order
  • Articles in AMA require journals to be abbreviated, search the NLM Catalog to find the correct journal abbreviation. If the abbreviation is not in this catalog, contact your librarian.
  • If a DOI (digital object identifier) is available you must include it in your citation, it will be in the detailed records in the databases or on the publisher's website. You can also use the free Crossref DOI Lookup tool linked below.

Names of Journals

In AMA Style, the names of journals are abbreviated, italicized, and capitalized in title case. Use the NLM Catalog: Journals referenced in the NCBI Databases search to determine the correct abbreviation of the journal title.

AMA Examples

In-text citations

  • Arabic numeral superscript is inserted as follows:
    • Immediately next to the fact, idea, or quotation being cited. 
      • Ex. This drug is used to treat hepatitis.1
    • Outside periods and commas.
      • Ex. Storing latex at high heat may cause degradation, 2,3-5,7 but it is difficult to keep materials cool in a desert environment.
    • Inside colons and semi-colons.
      • Ex. Some physicians choose to store prescription pads in locked cabinets 8; others keep them in their coats at all times. 9
    • When more than 2 references are cited at a given place in the manuscript, use hyphens to join the first and last numbers of a closed series; use commas without space to separate other parts of multiple citations. 
      • Ex. As reported previously,1,4-7,19,24

Bibliographic Citations

  • All references to journals should include the following elements:
    • Author’s surnames and initials
    • Title of article and subtitle (as applicable)
    • Abbreviated name of the journal
    • Year
    • Volume number
    • Issue number
    • Part or supplement number, when pertinent
    • Inclusive page numbers
  • Examples below

AMA citation

AMA citation

For additional information and examples of citing specific sources, check out the AMA Manual of Style, Chapter 3: References

Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) also has more information on AMA Style.

Paraphrasing

What is paraphrasing? Paraphrasing is used when you include evidence from other researchers in your writing. 

Paraphrasing is

  • Conveying the author's original message in your own words 
  • Preferred over quotations in all forms of science writing
  • Acknowledged with a citation

Four R's of Paraphrasing

  • Reword-replace words with synonyms
  • Rearrange-change the sentence format; move the phrases around
  • Realize-figure out which words cannot be changed
  • Recheck-determine if you have all the important information and that the new statement makes sense

Practice Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is a skill that needs to be practiced, use the tools below to practice your paraphrasing.

Zotero

Zotero is citation management software to help you manage, organize and cite resources. The library has an entire guide dedicated to Zotero use the link below to access it.