Within the publishing industry, article numbering has emerged as an easy and efficient way to cite journal articles. Article numbering has already been successfully rolled out to Elsevier's multidisciplinary open access journal Heliyon, as well as more than 200 other journals, and has been well received by the academic community. Based on that positive feedback, we are now pleased to introduce article numbering to Medicina Clínica Práctica from this issue.
What is article numbering?A unique article number is an abbreviated form of an article's DOI - digital object identifier. Citing an article with an article number is very simple: the article number is used instead of the page range in the citation.
[2] Van der Geer J, Hanraads JAJ, Lupton RA. The art of writing a scientific article. Heliyon. 2018;19:100205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2018.100205.
While journal volumes and issue numbers will remain in place, article numbering will now play the key role in identifying specific articles. The introduction of article numbers brings several benefits for the journal and its readers and authors.
Benefits of article numberingMore flexible reading: Article content can be optimized based on the device used to access it, supporting reading on-the-move, without needing to know how many traditional print pages the article takes up.
Increased options for grouping related content: In online collections and Special Issues, articles can now be placed in any order, helping readers to identify papers relevant to their research interests faster.
Faster publication: With article numbers, the version of record of the article is online and citable as soon as the proof corrections have been incorporated, ensuring readers have access to the latest research faster.
We are delighted that Medicina Clínica Práctica readers and authors will now enjoy these benefits.
