Comma position with citation



This question regards Vancouver referencing, though I suppose the issue could really arise regardless of what is contained in the in-text citation.


Consider the sentence:



As dogs are mammals they give birth to live young.



Clearly this is better separated:



As dogs are mammals, they give birth to live young.



But what if we feel the need to justify the statement that dogs are mammals?



As dogs are mammals [1], they give birth to live young.



Or:



As dogs are mammals, [1] they give birth to live young.



The former makes more sense to me - I intuitively would like the citation to be contained on the same side of the comma as the clause to which it relates.


But I have a feeling the latter is perhaps 'correct', and the comma should not surround the citation, just as it should not surround a parenthetical? (Which I do unashamedly anyway)



Answer



According to page 2 of this Vancouver Style Guide, the citation in brackets should be placed after any commas and periods.


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