Abstract
This issue of Foregut is our eighth issue and the last one for 2022. In a little over 2.5 years, we have gone from a concept of becoming an integrated journal to developing a multidisciplinary collaborative editorial group, to completing 8 issues.1,2 We have covered a wide variety of foregut topics including Barrett’s esophagus, 3 GERD,4,5 esophageal motility, 6 obesity, 7 hiatal hernias, 8 esophageal cancer, 9 and achalasia. 10
We could not have achieved this success without the support of the American Foregut Society (AFS) leadership, the dedication of our editorial board and team, and most importantly our colleagues whom we tasked with providing deep dives into the topics close to the hearts of the foregut world. These published high-level manuscripts are the backbone of establishing Foregut as the destination journal for dialogue around foregut disease. As a result, foregut surgeons and gastroenterologists are submitting original research articles and the number of submissions continues to rise with each issue now carrying at least 4 original research manuscripts.
This past year we have worked diligently to engage the AFS members to not only submit research to THEIR journal but also to review submissions. Reviewers are integral to supporting a fair and unbiased peer review process. Our reviewers’ comments and suggestions improve the quality of the submissions that are published in Foregut. As a reminder, our Foregut reviewers are provided with a 60-day free trial to Foregut and receive credit on the Web of Science (formerly Publons) for their contributions. We thank all our reviewers (see list in this volume) for their work to make Foregut an outstanding journal.
As a new journal, we understand the reticence of some authors to submit their original research due to concerns about citation, size of reader audience, and perhaps impact factor. However, in 2022, the measure of one’s “impact” is measured far differently that it has been in the past. All our articles are promoted on Twitter via our Social Media Ambassadors—Dr. James Haddad and Dr. Sven Eriksson to a vibrant medical and surgical community on Twitter and our nearly 1500 followers (as of October 25, 2022). Additionally, our publisher, SAGE, provides access to the Altmetric Report for each article which not only tracks citations but also mentions of the article in the popular press, platforms such as Mendeley, blogs, Facebook, and Wikipedia. All our articles are also indexed on Google Scholar.
The future is bright for Foregut. Our readership is growing, and the number of original research submissions is increasing. We look forward to applying for indexing and receiving an impact factor in the very near future. Our primary goal as editors will continue to be production of a high-quality journal with a combination of original research and invited articles. We are excited to move into year 3 of Foregut and look forward to the support of all members of the AFS.
Happy holidays and a prosperous and healthy 2023 to all!
