Reviewing manuscripts for the American Journal of Neuroradiology: responsibilities, challenges, and rewards.

Rewards " Peer review is the critical assessment of manuscripts submitted to journals by experts who are not part of the editorial staff. " —International Committee of Medical Journal Editors 1 T he American Journal of Neuroradiology (AJNR) uses peer review for all Original Research articles, Technical Notes, and Case Reports. Only Review Articles, Letters to the Editor, Society News, and Book Reviews do not undergo a formal double-blind peer review. Ab initio rejections are rare but occasionally may be rendered if an Editor finds a manuscript to be inappropriate for AJNR. Our peer review system is double-blind; that is, the reviewers do not know the identity of the authors and vice versa (in a single-blind review system, the reviewers know the name(s) of the author(s), but the authors do not know those of the reviewers). I believe this assures equitable and honest reviews devoid of personal differences and contributes to a perception of fairness (which is as important as fairness itself!). We also mask any reference to the institution where a study originates, any identifying information , and all acknowledgments. Despite these precautions, peer review is not perfect. Because handling the double-blind review process is not devoid of problems, some journals permit their reviewers to " see " the names of the authors. One of their reasons is as follows: previous publications may be checked to avoid duplication and self-plagiarism. AJNR requests that authors sign a conflict of interest/disclosure form stating that their work is original and has not appeared, partially or completely, in other journals. How about the identity of the reviewers? AJNR also maintains this privately to assure that reviewers may express their thoughts honestly, without fear of repercussions. Conversely, some editors propose that identifying the reviewers' names on articles leads to greater responsibility and civility, while giving them credit. Because academic credit is what most reviewers get from their work, this makes sense from theoretic standpoint. These editors also believe that blinded reviews result in many gratuitous and poor quality assessments (not my experience). A recently published survey shows that more than 50% of authors express concerns about reviewer competence and bias. 2 Younger reviewers may be afraid of retribution, and keeping their names blinded protects them. AJNR never reveals our reviewers' names, and we go as far as publishing anonymous Book Reviews to assure that persons writing them can express an honest point of view. …