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The European Heart Journal (EHJ) takes submissions through Editorial Manager, and its author instructions set a hard word and reference limit for each article type. This guide pulls those rules into one place: the system, the article-type limits, the reporting guidelines tied to study design, the cost and licence terms, and what the cover letter must say. Everything below comes from the journal’s own General Instructions page, checked on 2026-10-29.
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Suggested question: “Which system does the European Heart Journal use?”
What it is
The European Heart Journal is a cardiovascular medicine journal published with Oxford University Press and linked to the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). The journal’s instructions state that authors should submit their manuscript in Editorial Manager, and that new corresponding authors register for an account first. The sign-in is reached from the journal’s Editorial Manager site at editorialmanager.com/eurheartj.
Who runs it and what it covers
The author instructions sit on the journal’s Oxford Academic site, and the ESC lists the journal on its authors page for the ESC journal family. Authors who accept the standard licence grant an exclusive licence to the European Society of Cardiology. Editorial review runs in stages: an Editorial Board assessment comes first, a handling editor follows, and the Editor-in-Chief makes the final decision.
How to submit: step by step
- Register as corresponding author. New corresponding authors create an account in Editorial Manager before submitting.
- Pick the article type. Each type has its own word and reference limit (table below). Several types are invitation only, so check before you start.
- Match your design to a reporting guideline. The journal names one per study type (table below). Randomised and clinical trials need prospective registration, and systematic reviews need PROSPERO registration.
- Complete the Declarations Form. A Data Availability Statement is required in every article and is delivered through this form. Authors who present no data use the wording the journal gives: “No new data were generated or analysed in support of this research”.
- Write the cover letter. It must cover the points listed in the cover-letter section below.
- Confirm ethics and consent. Human experimentation follows the Declaration of Helsinki, and the journal follows COPE and ICMJE guidance on ethics and authorship.
- Upload and submit in Editorial Manager. A preprint posted on medRxiv or bioRxiv can instead be submitted directly to EHJ from that server.
Article types, word limits and reference limits
Word limits exclude the title, abstracts, figure legends and references. Choosing the wrong type is the most avoidable submission error, so this table is the part to check first.
| Article type | Word limit | Reference limit | Invitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clinical Research Article | 5,000 | 100 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Translational Science Article | 5,000 | 100 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Meta-analysis | 5,000 | 100 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Rapid Communication | 1,000 | 10 | Not stated as invitation only |
| State of the Art Review | 5,000 | 150 | Typically invited; unsolicited submissions considered |
| Great Debate | 5,000 | 150 | Invitation only; editors consider proposals |
| Viewpoint | 1,500 | 15 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Hypothesis | 1,500 | 15 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Special Article | Case by case | 150 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Discussion Forum | 500 | 10 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Cardiovascular Flashlight | 250 | 5 | Not stated as invitation only |
| Editorial | 1,500 | 15 | Invitation only |
| CardioPulse | 1,000 | 10 | Invitation only |
For ESC Official Output, the instructions give the maximum word count as “not applicable”; it is submitted under the Statement article type with the ESC Scientific Documents Committee approval letter.
Which reporting guideline applies
The instructions pair each study design with a named guideline. Reading the checklist before drafting is cheaper than rebuilding the methods section afterwards.
| Study type | Guideline named by the journal |
|---|---|
| Randomised and clinical trials | CONSORT, with prospective registration |
| Observational studies and registry or records-based trials | STROBE, plus CODE-EHR minimum standards (see our STROBE checklist guide) |
| Systematic reviews and meta-analyses | PRISMA and MOOSE, with PROSPERO registration (see how to register on PROSPERO) |
| Diagnostic or prognostic tests | STARD |
| Animal experimentation | ARRIVE (see ARRIVE guidelines explained) |
| Economic evaluations | CHEERS |
| Genetic association studies | STREGA |
| Qualitative research | SRQR |
| Quality improvement | SQUIRE |
| Study protocols | SPIRIT |
What the cover letter must say
- Disclose any use of AI at submission. AI tools cannot be listed as authors (see AI disclosure statement examples).
- State whether an EHJ Editor is a co-author or contributor.
- Explain any request to exclude specific reviewers. The journal does not guarantee the request will be granted.
- If you need an embargo, say so in the cover letter and email the Editorial Office with the exact date and time the paper can be published.
- For a Fast Track petition, the cover letter is one of three items; the text abstract and the manuscript are also needed as separate files, and the petition is not considered without all three.
Cost, licence and preprints
Publishing under the standard licence carries no charge. Open access requires an open access charge, and accepting an invitation does not waive it. Where an institution participates in a Read & Publish agreement, the institution pays, provided it is listed as the corresponding author’s primary affiliation at submission. The journal does not permit changing the corresponding author afterwards to gain that funding. Colour figures carry no charge of any type. For the licence models behind these terms, see our guide to hybrid open access journals.
Authors may share the Author’s Original Version (preprint) anywhere, adding the required acknowledgement once accepted and the DOI and Version of Record link after publication. Accepted manuscripts may go to institutional or non-commercial repositories after a 12-month embargo. The Version of Record can be posted publicly only under CC BY or CC BY-NC. ESC Guidelines are excluded from these provisions. See medRxiv explained for the preprint server route.
Strengths and limits of the process
What the instructions make easy
- Every article type has a published word and reference limit, so scope is fixed before writing.
- Reporting guidelines are named by study design.
- No fee for the standard licence and none for colour figures.
- Direct transfer from medRxiv and bioRxiv.
What to plan for
- Peer review is single-anonymised: reviewers know the authors, and authors do not know the reviewers. Manuscripts are typically sent to at least two reviewers, and provisionally accepted papers get a detailed statistical review.
- Open access has a charge that an invitation does not remove.
- Accepted manuscripts in repositories wait out a 12-month embargo.
- An appeal must be made within one month of the final decision, and only one appeal per manuscript is considered.
Alternatives: other routes to the same journal
| Route | What the journal states |
|---|---|
| Direct submission | Submit in Editorial Manager after registering as corresponding author |
| Preprint transfer | medRxiv and bioRxiv preprints can be submitted directly to EHJ from those servers |
| Fast Track | Petition with a cover letter, a text abstract and the manuscript, each as a separate file |
| Invited types | Great Debate, Editorial and CardioPulse are invitation only; State of the Art Reviews are typically invited |
If you are still deciding where to send a cardiology paper, our guide on how to choose a journal covers the decision in general terms.
FAQ
Which system does the European Heart Journal use?
Editorial Manager. The journal’s instructions say authors should submit their manuscript there, and new corresponding authors register first.
Does the European Heart Journal charge to submit?
The instructions describe no submission fee. Publishing under the standard licence carries no charge, open access requires an open access charge, and colour figures carry no charge.
Is peer review anonymous?
It is single-anonymised: authors’ identities are known to editors and reviewers, while reviewers’ identities are hidden from authors.
Can I submit a preprint?
Yes. Authors may share a preprint anywhere, and medRxiv and bioRxiv preprints can be submitted directly to the journal from those servers.
Is a data availability statement required?
Yes, in every article, delivered through the Declarations Form. Sharing the data itself is encouraged where ethically feasible but not mandated.
Can I appeal a rejection?
Yes, within one month of the final decision, once per manuscript, by emailing the editorial office a Word document with the manuscript ID and your reasons.
Sources
- Oxford Academic, European Heart Journal, General Instructions to Authors: academic.oup.com/eurheartj/pages/General_Instructions (checked 2026-10-29).
- European Society of Cardiology, Authors and the ESC Journal Family: escardio.org/publications/journals/authors-and-the-esc-journal-family (checked 2026-10-29).
- Journal submission site: editorialmanager.com/eurheartj (checked 2026-10-29).
Limits and rules change; the journal’s current instructions govern.
