Updated Figure Type Inclusion to Aid in Accessibility and Searchability

At the intersection of reporting completeness and avoiding wordiness stood the JAMA Network figure title. For years, the directive against naming the figure type in the figure title has been a core tenet of figure editing. An editor could sit back with satisfaction (but not too long, given the deadline-based environment) knowing that the omission satisfied the itch to adhere to the recommended count of 10 to 15 words and the convention of treating a figure as a self-explanatory visual element.

That all changed in 2025.

What could supplant word count and traditional principles in the heart of an editor? The reasons for the change are so forthright that it’s a wonder we did not revise guidance until now.

Not everyone grasps things the same way, so inclusion of the figure type can aid in reader interpretation. To navigate searches in the internet wilderness, inclusion of the figure type can assist in getting specific online search results. To increase accessibility, inclusion of the figure type can help those who use assistive technology such as screen readers.

Several published examples show this guidance in action.

Flow diagram

An example of a flow diagram

Heat map

Forest plots

Kaplan-Meier curves

Dot plots

Illustration

As in many JAMA Network conventions, modifications must be made based on context. The addition of figure type may not be automatically pluggable into every title. Consider figures with multiple images or panels. If inclusion of a figure type in the title is not feasible due to complexity of presentation, then the figure type should be named in the caption.

Whereas the intersection of reporting completeness and assumed visual completeness was bounded by limits, this evolution in reporting places figure titles at a new intersection characterized by expansion: figure titles now occupy the junction of reporting completeness and service to all readers.