The fourth year in Barcelona

Article Outline

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In recent years there has been enormous growth in the amount of new information on liver diseases. The quality and quantity of clinical research has increased markedly. The two areas that have seen the greatest increase are liver transplantation and chronic viral hepatitis. This is probably due to the continued expansion and generalization of liver transplantation as a standard therapy for patients with end-stage liver disease and the introduction of new and effective antiviral drugs against hepatitis B and C viruses. A significant increase has been seen in basic research on liver diseases which is a reflection of the application of the latest advances in areas of cell biology and genetics to different areas of liver disease, including mechanisms of liver cell death and inflammation, carcinogenesis, liver regeneration and fibrogenesis. Finally, we are seeing more ‘translational’ research, which links basic and clinical researches and will very likely provide key information for the management of patients with liver diseases.

In such a fast moving field, the objectives of Journal of Hepatology are twofold: to provide a scientific framework for the publication and dissemination of new information on liver diseases and to educate all physicians interested in liver diseases. The current editorial team of the Journal is committed to these two major goals. From a scientific perspective, the Journal's aim is to publish the best clinical and basic liver researches submitted in the fastest way possible. The Journal has obtained an increasingly high reputation for publishing good clinical studies, although basic studies are also carefully selected, so that a balance is maintained between clinical and basic science. Submissions of original articles increased markedly during 2003 and approached 1000 manuscripts by the close of the year (a 35% increase over 2002) with the acceptance rate being maintained at 25%, which is similar for both clinical and basic studies. The introduction of an Internet-based manuscript processing system in January 2003 brought about a visible reduction in manuscript evaluation time. Furthermore, accepted manuscripts are published in hard copy 3–4 months after acceptance but can be accessed in a specific section of the Journal's website (Articles in Press) only 6 weeks after editorial acceptance.

From an educational perspective, the Journal continues to serve the needs of hepatologists, gastroenterologists and the medical community in general. This role is served by several sections of the Journal, such as Milestones in Liver Disease, the clinical and basic review articles, special articles, including reports of Consensus Conferences and the recently introduced Short Reviews on Liver Transplantation, all of which are accessible for free through the website. However, the most important educational tool of the Journal in recent years has been the supplement on Therapy in Liver Diseases that was started in 2000 and was continued in 2003. This will be published every other year from now on. This Supplement has been incredibly successful not only from an educational but a scientific perspective, as the articles published in 2000 received an average number of citations of 12.4 during 2002.

The current editorial team is now entering the last year of service to the Journal. All Associate Editors, Editorial staff and Publisher's staff remain committed to provide the best services to our readers. The fact that our 2002 impact factor has increased to 4.97, the highest ever, reflects that we are being successful in the adaptation of the Journal to the very rapidly evolving field of liver diseases.

Appreciative thanks goes to Jürg Reichen for his outstanding contribution to writing The Bridge over the past two years, this is now in the capable hands of Ulrich Beuers. The success of the journal requires a large amount of dedication by the Editorial staff. Consequently, we have decided to nominate Dr. Pere Ginès as Executive Editor whilst the position of Assistant Editor is being filled by Dr. Xavier Forns.