Vancouver is the standard citation style for medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and the health sciences. It uses numbered references in the order they appear in your text — not alphabetical order like Harvard or APA. Once you understand its logic, it's one of the quickest styles to apply consistently.
How the Numbering System Works
Every source gets a number when you first cite it. That number stays with the source for the rest of your paper. If you cite the same source again, you reuse the original number — you don't create a new one.
In Your Text
Hypertension affects over one billion adults worldwide (1). Recent meta-analyses confirm that lifestyle interventions reduce systolic pressure significantly (2,3). Smith et al. (1) also noted a seasonal variation in prevalence.
Reference List
1. Smith J, Patel A, Kumar R. Global hypertension burden. Lancet. 2021;397(10285):1625–36.
2. Brown C, Wilson D. Lifestyle interventions for hypertension. BMJ. 2022;378:e070351.
3. Nguyen T, et al. Meta-analysis of exercise interventions. JAMA. 2023;329(4):312–24.
In-Text Citation Formats
Vancouver citations appear as numbers in your text. There are two acceptable formats — check which your institution or target journal requires:
Superscript (most common)
The citation number sits above the line, immediately after the relevant text or author name, before any punctuation: ...was reported in a 2022 study4. Or: Jones et al.4 found that...
Bracketed numbers
Some journals prefer numbers in square brackets: ...was reported in a 2022 study [4]. Or: Jones et al. [4] found that...
Multiple citations
- Consecutive numbers: 2,3,4 or [2,3,4]
- A range: 2–4 or [2–4] (use an en dash for ranges of three or more consecutive numbers)
Journal Articles (the core source type)
Journal articles make up the vast majority of citations in medical writing. The format follows the ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) guidelines.
Journal Name Abbreviations
Vancouver requires abbreviated journal names, not full names. Abbreviations follow the standard established by Index Medicus / MEDLINE. If a journal is not listed in MEDLINE, write the full name.
| Full Name | Abbreviation |
|---|---|
| The Lancet | Lancet |
| The New England Journal of Medicine | N Engl J Med |
| The British Medical Journal | BMJ |
| Journal of the American Medical Association | JAMA |
| BMC Health Services Research | BMC Health Serv Res |
| Annals of Internal Medicine | Ann Intern Med |
Books and Other Source Types
Book (entire)
Chapter in an Edited Book
Website
5 Common Vancouver Mistakes
- ✗Alphabetical reference list — Vancouver lists references in citation order, not alphabetical order. Source 1 = first cited; source 2 = second cited.
- ✗Repeating a number for a re-cited source — If you cite Smith et al. three times, use number 3 each time. Don't create numbers 3, 8, and 15 for the same source.
- ✗Full journal names — Vancouver requires MEDLINE-abbreviated journal names. "New England Journal of Medicine" should be "N Engl J Med."
- ✗Listing all authors when there are more than 6 — List the first six, then "et al." This is the opposite of APA 7, which lists up to 20.
- ✗Missing semicolon in journal citations — The correct format is Year;Volume(Issue):pages — note the semicolon after the year. Many students write a comma instead.
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