EDITORIAL

A time for change

David L. Turpin, Editor-in-Chief

Seattle, Wash

Ibegan my second career, that of dental editor,shortly after I became an orthodontist. At thattime, new graduates were denied the right to vote

in our local orthodontic society until they could show5 completed cases. Three of us challenged the Boardof Directors of the Pacific Coast Society of Orthodon-tists (PCSO)— and they promptly gave us all jobs.From that time on, I have been an orthodontic editor:for 11 years with the PCSO Bulletin, another 11 yearswith the Angle Orthodontist, and, since 1999, as edi-tor-in-chief of the American Journal of Orthodontics& Dentofacial Orthopedics (AJO-DO).

On December 31, 2010, when my second contractexpires, I will have served as editor of the AJO-DOfor 11 years. It has been a joy and an honor to havehad this unique opportunity.

My early goals as a journal editor were shaped ingood part by the late Tod Dewel in the mid-1970s,when I served on his editorial board. For me, he wasthe perfect mentor. And as editor of the AJO-DO, Ihave always tried to live up to the high standard heset. With your permission, I want to mention a few goalsthe AJO-DO has accomplished in the last decade, withexcellent support of the AAO.

To start with, the cover was redesigned to featureclinically interesting content while showcasing thegoal we all share: a patient with a beautiful smile. Weexpanded our use of color to 100% and discontinuedcharging authors for color in their articles. Under theguidance of Vince Kokich, we standardized the case re-port format, resulting in increases in both the qualityand the number of acceptable articles. We expandedthe online access to issues back to 1923; Volume 1(1915) is now within reach. We moved the AJO-DO’scontinuing education section to a new home, under theAAO’s umbrella; the test is now available online, allow-ing for immediate grading and awarding of the appropri-ate continuing education credits. We have increased theimpact factor consistently every year, surpassing allother orthodontic journals, with the most recent jumpfrom 0.988 to 1.126 in 2008. We implemented an elec-

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0889-5406/$36.00

Copyright � 2009 by the American Association of Orthodontists.

doi:10.1016/j.ajodo.2009.02.006

tronic manuscript submission and review protocol, ac-cessible to all our authors and reviewers. Submissionshave increased by 300%, with an expanded internationalprominence; our acceptance rate is less than 30%,allowing for greater selectivity in the quality of articlespublished. We added an annual supplement, the ProductResource Guide, published in April, providing a memberbenefit as well as additional revenues. The AAO suc-cessfully limited the increase in our subscription priceper member over 10 years to only $3 (from $30 to $33for all domestic and international members). We ex-panded both the ranks of our associate editors, with theirspecific areas of expertise, and their duties. Associateeditors now appoint reviewers, evaluate their comments,and make final recommendations. This expansion is stillongoing. Finally, we initiated the abridged 2-page printsupplement format for Online Only research studies;our goal is to reduce the current publication delay andstrengthen the AJO-DO’s clinical presence. As we pub-lish more articles in the Online Only format, associateeditors and others will become more important in thepreparation of the print supplement material.

Realizing that my long-term goals for the AJO-DOwill be accomplished within the next 2 years, I have askedthe Board of Trustees to replace me as editor-in-chief ofthe AJO-DO when my contract expires on December 31,2010. Since this journal’s beginning in 1915, there havebeen only 6 editors, with each contributing uniquely,helping it to become the world’s most respected ortho-dontic publication. I have reason to believe that any num-ber of qualified members will apply for this position. Thecontinued long-term improvement of the AJO-DO is myuppermost goal in making this decision, as well as myown retirement. Of course, I stand ready to help as longas needed in the transition to a new editor. I will alwayshonor the support I’ve been fortunate to have from ChrisBurke, managing editor. She has worked tirelessly inserving the orthodontic specialty with her communica-tion skills for more than 25 years. I will miss workingwith Chris more than I will ever miss the next monthlydeadline for an editorial or a new cover idea.

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