Author formats in the Reference List

The authors follow the pattern of Surname Initials (e.g. Brown JA) and are separated by a comma.

If there are six authors/editors or less, include the names of all authors/editors.

If there are more than six authors/editors, only list the first three names, then shorten with et al. (e.g. Smith AA, Jones BA, Bloggs JC, et al.).

1. Hallal AH, Amortegui JD, Jeroukhimov IM, et al. Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography accurately detects common bile duct stones in resolving gallstone pancreatitis. J Am Coll Surg. 2005;200(6):869-75.

Mentioning the authors by name in text

In narrative citations in text, you mention the author's names as part of the sentence. Place the reference number next to the author's names. For example:

Research conducted by Smith⁷ showed a correlation between...

When you have only two authors, you will always mention both authors in the sentence:

Research conducted by Smith and Green⁷ showed a correlation between...

If you have three or more authors, give the first author and et al (note that for AMA you do not put a full stop after al in et al):

Research conducted by Smith et al⁷ showed a correlation between...