© 2007 American Thoracic Society doi: 10.1164/rccm.200612-1784ED
Update on the AJRCCM—2007American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine The AJRCCM continues to be the major international journal in respiratory and critical care medicine. Our most recent impact factor, calculated using articles that appeared during 2005, was approximately 8.7, the highest among all journals in both the pulmonary and critical care areas. The impact factor rose from 8.1 in the previous year, demonstrating growth in the average number of times articles in the Journal are cited. Parameters in addition to the rise in the impact factor attest to the robust state of the Journal. We receive almost 2,000 submissions per year from all over the world and continue to be highly selective, accepting approximately 18% of the submitted manuscripts. Less than a third (32%) of submissions come from the United States, reflecting the true international nature of the Journal. The categories of submissions to the AJRCCM also cover a wide spectrum of disease processes (Figure 1). While asthma and COPD are the major foci for articles submitted in the category of major lung diseases, other pathophysiologic processes, including interstitial lung disease, pulmonary hypertension, lung cancer, and cystic fibrosis, are also included under this rubric.
The turn-around time from submission of a manuscript to first decision remains short, averaging 33 days (Figure 2). As expected, most of this time is involved in obtaining the reviews from external experts. It is important for articles to appear in print within a short period after being accepted. For 2006, the average time from article acceptance until being published was 2.6 months, placing us among the upper tier of all journals for this parameter of performance.
To minimize any delays in the review process, we generally obtain two or three reviews in considering a manuscript. Our most recent statistics show that three or fewer reviewers were utilized for 85% of the manuscripts submitted to the AJRCCM. We carefully monitor the quality of the reviews and are highly appreciative of the excellence and diligence that our reviewers demonstrate in considering manuscripts for the Journal. Of note, a large number of experts participate in the AJRCCM's review process. In 2006, 2,338 reviewers were involved in reading and commenting on articles submitted to the Journal. NEW FEATURES We continue to add new features that we believe will enhance the accessibility of information contained in our manuscripts. In particular, we now include an "At a Glance Commentary" box on the first page of each article. The "At a Glance Commentary" addresses two issues: the first is to provide a brief overview of the existent knowledge related to the subject of the manuscript, and the second is to summarize what the study adds to the field. The information contained in these boxes should allow the reader to grasp the essence of the study, and particularly why information contained in the article was sufficiently important to be published in the AJRCCM. We will continue in 2007 to publish Pulmonary and Critical Care Updates. These articles summarize and put into perspective the major publications relating to important areas in pulmonary and critical care medicine that appeared in the AJRCCM and other journals in 2006. IMAGE MANIPULATION We are concerned about the quality and veracity of data presented in the Journal. Manipulation of images, particularly gels and digital photographs, has been the focus of several recent investigations. A major example involved an article published in Science that initially appeared to show groundbreaking advances in stem cell research, but was subsequently demonstrated to include images that had been manipulated or fabricated (1). There are data that indicate that as many as 20% of all published scientific manuscripts contain images that have been inappropriately manipulated and that 1% of articles contain images with fraudulent manipulations, such as removal or additions of bands to gels (2–4). New language has been added to our instructions for authors concerning image manipulation. While it is acceptable to adjust the brightness, contrast, or color balance of an image, this is only true if such changes are applied to the whole image and as long as they do not misrepresent any information that was contained in the original (5). We are now examining all digital images in manuscripts accepted for publication using new software to determine if any inappropriate changes have been made to the figures. GENETICS IN THE JOURNAL A growing number of articles published in the AJRCCM concern the genetics of respiratory or critical care disorders. At present, our general approach to such articles is that they should include the analysis of two distinct populations so that the findings can be appropriately validated. Short of having two populations, a sufficiently large initial population for robust statistical analysis coupled with meaningful data concerning the functional effects and importance of the genetic alteration will be required for publication. CLINICAL TRIALS All clinical trials that are submitted to the AJRCCM should be registered in a publicly accessible and searchable database that is administered by a not-for-profit organization (6). While the preferred database is http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/, there are a number of other acceptable databases that authors can use. The definition of a clinical trial is quite broad, but specifically includes studies in which interventions, pharmacologic or otherwise, are utilized in patients or volunteers. Because there is no fee for registration, and the registration process is neither difficult nor time consuming, there is little reason not to register a trial at its initiation. Articles presenting results from interventional clinical trials should follow the CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) guidelines (7). In particular, randomized trials examining two therapies or comparing a novel therapeutic regimen with placebo should include an initial figure showing the number of patients enrolled, those eliminated from analysis during the study and the reasons for this, and the final number of patients utilized in the statistical analyses to draw the study's conclusions. The CONSORT guidelines are available at http://www.consort-statement.org/Statement/revisedstatement.htm. Authors are expected to comply with the 22-item CONSORT checklist when preparing their manuscripts. Although the format, editorial processes, and features for the AJRCCM may change, our goals remain constant. In particular, we strive to publish the most important information concerning respiratory and critical care medicine. While it is expected that our readership will find articles of interest in other journals, we hope that the AJRCCM will be the first journal they look to for new and meaningful insights into the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of pulmonary and critical care disorders. FOOTNOTES Conflict of Interest Statement: E.A. has no financial relationship with a commercial entity that has an interest in the subject of this manuscript. REFERENCES
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