How is Vancouver different from IEEE?

Both are numbered citation-order systems, but they differ in punctuation and author formatting, and Vancouver uses Index Medicus journal abbreviations. Vancouver dominates the health sciences; IEEE dominates engineering.

Should the numbers be superscript or in brackets?

Both are common in Vancouver and your institution decides. Pick one and apply it consistently; we follow whichever your guide specifies.

Vancouver

Numbered referencing used across medicine, nursing, and the health sciences.

Typically used inMedicine, nursing and health, and the biomedical sciences.

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Key rules

The rules that actually get marked.

These are the distinctive rules for Vancouver. Edge cases vary by edition and institution, so confirm anything unusual against your department's guide.

Sources are cited by number in order of appearance, shown in parentheses or as superscript per your guide: (1) or ¹.
The reference list is numbered in citation order, matching the in-text numbers.
Author names use surname then initials with no full stops: Smith J.
List up to six authors; for seven or more, list the first six then 'et al.'.
Journal titles follow the standard Index Medicus abbreviations.

Questions

Vancouver, clarified.

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