Citation Help for AMA: Formatting Your Paper

Instructions on format for AMA are not explicitly stated in the AMA Manual of Style. Please use these guidelines as a rough estimate only of the requirements, and seek your professor's expertise for more specific support especially with aspects like a title page.

Spacing: Double space throughout the document including for block quotes with no extra space between paragraphs or headings.

Margins: 1"

Indents: 1/2" for first lines of paragraphs and block quotes

Font: Size 10-12, any font type. AMA suggests two typefaces (a serif for body text and a sans serif for titles and subheads) with appropriate use of styles, such as bold and italics for headings for a scholarly publication. 

Page numbering: Each page, beginning with the title page, should be numbered consecutively. Page numbers are usually placed in the upper right corner.

Headings: Use section and subsection headings to organize content. See Chapter 2.8 of the AMA Manual: Parts of a Manuscript, Headings, Subheadings, and Side Headings for detailed information. No details on font are given, but an option for how to format them include section headings bolded and and subsection headings italicized. Below is an example: 

Introduction

Body Paragraphs

Summary

References

Numbers: Use Arabic numerals and avoid starting a sentence with a number.  If unavoidable, write out the number instead of using Arabic numerals.

Acronyms, abbreviations, and initialisms: Discourage use except for well-known and accepted units of measurement and some well-recognized terms. 

• If used, spell out at the first use, even if the acronym or initialism is well-known. Do not place periods between the letters of an acronym, abbreviation or initialism.
• State names should always appear as full names in the text of a manuscript. If included in references, use the two-letter abbreviation.

Tables and figures: Number them in the order of appearance in the paper. Follow the number with a brief description of the table or figure. A table is used for any data arranged in tabular format, and a figure is used for graphs, diagrams and images (like illustrations or photographs). Examples: Table 1. Characteristics of Heat Waves During the Study Period, 1999-2010 
Figure 1. Kaplan-Meier Estimates of Survival

See Chapter 4.0 of the AMA Manual: Tables, Figures, and Multimedia for more detailed information. 

References: Reference entries should be listed and numbered in the order they were cited in your paper. If the citation extends to a second line, do NOT indent (as in APA). 

Example from AMA Manual 3.11.3:
1. Sunderam S, Kissin DM, Crawford SB, et al. Assisted reproductive technology surveillance-United States, 2012. MMWR Surveill Summ. 2015;64(suppl 6):1-29.
2. Fanin M, Angelini C. Progress and challenges in diagnosis of dysferlinopathy. Muscle Nerve. Published online August 8, 2016. doi:10.1002/mus.25367