Editorial “Mission”

As you may have already noticed from the cover page, the American Journal of Perinatology has undergone some major changes. In this first editorial as Editors in Chief, we would like to take the opportunity to summarize our views of the journal and hopes for the future.

We consider the American Journal of Perinatology to be an international journal dedicated to dissemination of high-quality original research and current medical developments. The revised aims and scope for our journal can be found in the Instructions to Authors at www.thieme.com/ajp.

As editors, we intend to broaden the type of manuscripts for publication to include basic and translational studies as well as clinical investigations. Basic and translational studies provide the basis for testing clinically relevant hypotheses. Laboratory investigations can spark clinical investigations that lead to new treatments and therapies. Clinical studies add to the broad body of knowledge used by clinicians in decision-making. It is our goal to publish relevant and timely papers in the field of perinatology. Electronic publication will allow us to shorten the process even more, and provide authors with rapid time to publication allowing timely dissemination of important results.

We hope to include reviews relevant to both maternal-fetal medicine and neonatology, including cross-cutting topics that impact on both disciplines. These reviews will be invited and peer reviewed to insure expertise and quality for the readers of the journal.

Through the American Journal of Perinatology, we also hope to foster and reinforce the dialogue between the health care providers artificially separated by the perinatology divide; that is, those caring for the mother and fetus, and those caring for the newborn. Recent knowledge of the crucial role of the intrauterine environment in determining short- and long-term outcomes following birth underscores our conviction that future advances will depend on bridging this divide. We believe that the American Journal of Perinatology, with its new editorial structure and focus, is the ideal forum to foster this interchange and communication between obstetrical and neonatal providers and researchers. Soon, a single-page comments section will introduce the topics and research covered in each issue, with emphasis on highlighting the implications of each manuscript to each subspecialty.

In summary, our goals are to provide a broad array of high-quality original research, novel case reports, and evidence-based reviews relevant to the entire field of perinatology, with emphasis on bridging the maternal, fetal, and neonatal concerns. We are honored to serve as Editors in Chief. As we strive to continually improve the journal, we welcome your comments and suggestions.