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Irogers{at}ajroffice.org
It is gluttony to attempt to read a journal cover to cover in one sitting. The gourmand who attempts to take in a journal all at once is likely to have difficulty digesting the fare; in fact, such a reader may be overwhelmed and forced to give up before the meal is completed: There is just too much information to be consumed. Journal reading, like eating, is best done in moderation, a bit at a time.
How does an editor set the table to tempt the taste of the hungry customer? What's on the menu? Just as a fine meal consists of several courses—appetizer, salad, an entrée or two, and dessert, accompanied by bread and wine and coffee or tea—a good scientific journal should contain a variety of types of articles to whet and titillate the scientific appetite. Variety is the spice of life. The editor may tease the taste buds with a veritable smorgasbord of scientific fare. Certainly that is what we attempt to do at the AJR.
How does the AJR go about cooking up its educational banquet? To begin with, just as a chef depends on the produce available at local markets, editors depend on articles submitted by authors. And just as a chef selects the best food available for the table, editors, in concert with reviewers, select the best scientific articles available for inclusion in their journals. We are fortunate that those who work in the fields of radiology—the radiology researchers and authors—provide the AJR with such marvelous choices.
Every issue of the AJR contains approximately 45 articles of various types. The entrées or mainstays of any issue are Major Papers and Original Reports. These articles contain the results of basic and clinical research and describe original techniques and new observations in the imaging of various diseases. Each issue contains 20 to 25 Major Papers and four to eight Original Reports. Occasionally Major Papers and Original Reports are accompanied by a Commentary, an article by an authority on the subject, that stresses the importance and places in proper context the findings described in the preceding article.
Every month the AJR contains four or five Case Reports, reports of unique imaging findings of a disease that, in most instances, have not been reported in the literature. Case reports are not found on every medical journal's menu. Many scientific journals either have never published or have ceased the publication of case reports in the belief that case reports have limited scientific value, that they compete for page space with other articles, and—of prime importance to many editors and publishers—that case reports reduce a journal's impact factor [1]. The AJR continues to publish case reports because we believe they have merit and educational value, because authors continue to submit them, and because readers seem to enjoy them [2].
Along with new knowledge, the AJR also has on its menu Reviews and Pictorial Essays that serve as a form of CME (continuing medical education). These articles are designed to refresh the reader's memory about the spectrum of imaging features encountered in a particular disease and the various means by which the manifestations of a given disease can or should be imaged. Such articles do not report new knowledge but rather synthesize, integrate, and place in context recent developments in the imaging of specific diseases and abnormalities. Review articles are generally solicited from acknowledged experts. Each issue of the AJR contains one or two Reviews and four or five Pictorial Essays.
"How to" articles are also found on the AJR menu. These come to you as Perspectives and Technical Innovations. Perspectives are longer articles in which generally acknowledged experts describe the manner by which they conduct a particular examination or do a particular procedure and why they do it that way. Perspectives, like Reviews, are as a rule invited. Technical Innovations are descriptions of and reports on the use of new examination techniques or interventional procedures in a series of patients. Not every issue contains a Perspective: Eight to 10 appear each year. There are generally three or four Technical Innovations in each issue.
And there is more: The AJR menu includes a potpourri of other delectables sure to please the most discriminating palate, a various selection of articles, usually totaling three or four, devoted to education, computers in radiology, departmental administration, business practices, or the economics of the practice of radiology. And, I hasten to add, appearing for the past 6 years and still counting, the ever-popular monthly medicolegal series authored by Leonard Berlin. Surely you will find something among these items to whet your educational and informational appetites.
To complete our menu, we add a dash of flavorings and desserts, short and sweet articles: great cases in On the Viewbox, Radiologic—Pathologic Conferences from various hospitals, Trauma Cases from Harborview Medical Center, Photo Pages, Stefan Schatzki's Medicine in American Art series, Letters to the Editor, and Book Reviews—all are just the thing for quick browsing, educational snacks.
In short, the chefs at the AJR have a great kitchen for educational endeavors. Were we to be listed in the Michelin Guide, the AJR would certainly have three stars. So whenever the monthly issue of the Journal arrives, turn to the table of contents to check out our menu. You are sure to find something that appeals to your educational palate.
Bon appétit!
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