The Journal Formerly Known as the American Journal of Neuroradiology

I was most interested in the commentary in the April issue of AJNR (“How American is the American Journal of Neuroradiology?”) because it is hard not to notice the decreasing proportion of US articles. This commentary deserves careful reading by all academic neuroradiologists. The chart shown did not convey the magnitude of the trend. It shows that articles from the Americas represent half of the total through 2006. Using a different methodology (ie, pencil and paper), I see that there were 31 scientific articles in the February 2007 issue, and 23 (74%) of these had first authors based outside of the United States. In March 2007, 24 (82%) of 29 articles were likewise from outside of the US. This is striking because just 1 year ago in the March 2006 issue, US articles did account for 50% of the total.

It is certainly cause for celebration that AJNR has a global impact, and if it improves the quality of the science, then neuroradiologists and patients everywhere benefit. Still, one has to wonder what impact this trend will have on the US neuroradiology community. The commentary included this statement: “Academic physicians in the United States are under less pressure from their chairmen to publish, whereas those in other nations are under requirements to publish articles to qualify for promotion.”¹ Although I certainly agree that the pressure on academic radiologists to be clinically productive has increased at the expense of academic productivity, at the same time, I have seen no evidence that US committees on promotion are any less interested in publications. If there is only a 1 in 5 chance of getting a coveted publication slot in AJNR to start, then what will become of the new academic faculty, residents, and fellows who have had their last few articles rejected from AJNR, as they grapple, often daily, with their choice of academics instead of private practice?

Although I admire the journal for bringing this issue to the forefront, in my view, the commentary was lacking because it included no call to action for the US academic community. I suppose that is understandable if one thinks of AJNR now as a truly international journal and this is “just the way it is.” Still, it is my hope that the US academic community will take this commentary as a wake-up call, and that we should make every effort to find the time, money, and will to improve the number and quality of our publications. I wonder if the editors of AJNR feel any responsibility in this matter with regard to selection of articles. Clearly, AJNR is as American as the editors choose to make it.

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