The journal's evolution (2013–2014)

We are close to the end of the two-year period in which I have not only had the honor, but also the joy (in the truest sense of the word) of holding the position of Director of Revista Española de Cirugía Ortopédica y Traumatología (RECOT) and this is a good time to look back and take stock, following the healthy tradition of my predecessor, Dr. Gil-Garay.¹

I would have liked to offer a thorough overview of the 2 full years, but the constraints of the editorial process mean that, in order for these words to be included now without causing a delay to the issue they must be submitted to the Publishers 4–5 months in advance. Therefore, the data presented herein cover until July 2014 and refer to all 6 issues of 2013, but only the first 3 of 2014.

At a first glance, the most striking aspect of the works received is that their number has nearly doubled compared to 2012 (Fig. 1), since this year we expect to receive close to 200 works for assessment, surpassing the 176 received last year. This enables us to select better works, but, as I sadly explained in a previous editorial,² it also forces us to reject nearly 1 out of every 2 drafts, each of them produced with considerable effort and high expectations.

Figure 1.

Number of articles received by RECOT (*Data until 10th July 2014).

Therefore, the entire Editorial Committee has worked very hard over these 2 years, and so have the reviewers, when we consider that only 11% of works (generally editorials or letters to the editor) are accepted directly, whereas nearly half require 1 revision, and nearly one quarter require 2 (Fig. 2).

Figure 2.

Number of works accepted directly and submitted to 1 (R1) 2 (R2) or more reviews (*Data until 10th July 2014).

I would like to point out an aspect that should make all members of SECOT feel proud and excited. The number of foreign works received by RECOT has increased notably, reaching 15% of all works received, which is double the figure for 2012. Two thirds of these come from Latin American countries. It is clear that indexing confers our Journal an undeniable appeal, especially for those surgeons who share our language, but I must highlight the considerable promotion effort carried out by our current president, Dr. Forriol, during his meetings with representatives of affiliated societies.

Lastly, there has been a notable change in the profile of the type of works published in the Journal. The Editorial Committee's policy has been to prioritize quality in order to prepare the ground with a view to achieving the impact factor that this Journal deserves. As shown in Fig. 3 (which, since all the numbers for this year are now closed, includes all the issues for 2013 and 2014), the number of original works published has been maintained, whilst research works have increased significantly, at the cost of reducing the number of case reports, as these may find other means of publication and have a negative effect on the calculation of Impact Factor (IF) (Table 1).

Figure 3

Table 1.

Number and percentage of articles accepted/rejected by RECOT.

	Decisions adopted by years
	Total articles with completed assessment	Withdrawn	Accepted	Rejected (%)
2009	86	6	41	39 (49%)
2010	91	6	62	23 (27%)
2011	113	14	73	26 (26%)
2012	96	12	53	31 (37%)
2013	170	11	70	89 (56%)
2014^a	84^a	1^a	46^*	37^* (45%)

a

Data until 10th July 2014.

We have also managed to increase the number of articles dedicated to systematic reviews and consensus works in order to adapt to the current demand of evidence-based medicine, we have adapted a control system to detect fraud and plagiarism (“Cross-Check”) and, finally, all members now regularly receive the Journal's contents in advance through their e-mail.

I wouldn’t want to finish this brief report without expressing my deepest gratitude to the Editors, who I have always overloaded with work, and who have gone beyond what I asked of them,³ as well as the reviewers who, in an uninterested manner, have dissected manuscripts and provided suggestions to improve the quality of our publication.

We must all feel very satisfied. But satisfaction should not be mistaken with complacency because, in my opinion, there is still much to be done. We must continue to improve scientific quality, renew the list of reviewers grouping them by subspecialties, attract articles from relevant foreign authors and systematic reviews that can be cited by other publications and, once again, ensure that our best works do not find a better alternative in a foreign publication. I sincerely believe that we have fulfilled the objectives we set ourselves and have placed the Journal in a good position to tackle a new phase which, once again in the long history of Revista Española de Cirugía Ortopédica y Traumatología and marked by the request for our first IF, promises to be a fascinating challenge for the new Management.