JAMA Dermatology—The Year in Review, 2022 (2024)

JAMA Dermatology continued to thrive in 2022. The editorial leadership team carefully evaluated 2745 article submissions during the past year (Table). A total of 1300 of 2745 submissions (47%) were research articles, which was similar to the previous year. Acceptance rates also remained stable, with 10% of submissions overall and 11% of research articles accepted for publication. With an ongoing commitment to publishing excellence and process improvement, the journal continued to maintain its goal of reducing the time to publication, keeping the median days of acceptance to publication to 61 days while offering timely editorial decisions, including maintaining its median receipt-to-rejection time of 4 days and median receipt to first decision with peer review of 42 days. The editorial leadership team continued to strive to find ways to improve authors’ experience to ensure authors the fastest and best publication of their work. As predicted in last year’s review, many of the top dermatology journals achieved substantial increases in impact factors, which was likely a reflection of COVID-19 skin-related publications, and in line with trends seen across the medical literature. JAMA Dermatology’s impact factor increased from 10.3 to 11.8.

The journal broadened its digital reach, with more than 5.2 million full-text views and downloads in the past year (an approximately 20% increase), and expanded its connections to more than 68 000 followers on the social media channels Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, a 15% increase compared with the previous year. The highest-viewed papers included randomized clinical trials for psoriasis¹ and atopic dermatitis.² The article by Simpson et al² presented long-term (52 weeks) efficacy and safety data for upadacitinib treatment in patients with atopic dermatitis.

It comes as no surprise that the third of the top 3 articles by views and downloads, as well as one of the top 3 articles by Web of Science citations, is the living systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA) by Drucker and colleagues³ that reported systemic immunomodulatory treatments for atopic dermatitis. This NMA included 21 new articles published since its last systematic review 2 years prior, a clear indication of the rapid evolution of this field. Importantly, the finding that 2 Janus kinase inhibitors (abrocitinib, 200 mg, daily and upadacitinib, 30 mg, daily dose) were associated with further reduction in Eczema Area and Severity Index clinical scores compared with dupilumab (the medication highlighted in the 2020 NMA⁴) places a new class of medications as the leading systemic treatment for atopic dermatitis. Recognizing an NMA in this annual review also serves to highlight the clinical relevance of this powerful analytic tool to help clinicians and patients in making treatment choices among a wide range of available options.

It is a journal priority to feature research that informs and improves the clinical practice of dermatologists. The consensus statement by an international group of acne experts⁵ put a spotlight on high-value care in dermatology, developing recommendations on isotretinoin laboratory monitoring. The study by Basmanav et al⁶ evaluated the genetic spectrum of patients with uncombable hair syndrome, elucidating several molecular pathways to this clinical phenotype. This study was one of the top articles by Altmetric score in part because of its striking clinical images. Understanding the safety of treatments commonly used in dermatology is paramount, and the systematic review by Chen et al⁷ provides key reassuring evidence regarding clotting risks in patients with atopic dermatitis who are receiving systemic Janus kinase inhibitor therapy. Improving the way dermatologists help patients make decisions about their treatment is also critical to patient well-being and treatment success. The survey study by Thibau et al⁸ explored aspects of shared decision-making that were associated with consultation satisfaction by patients and caregivers. Several articles met the journal priority of elevating standards and creating best practices for dermatology clinical science. In the first JAMA Network Insights feature in JAMA Dermatology, Kirby⁹ presented an excellent summary of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in dermatology. Their development and use are valuable to the specialty, shifting the focus of clinical outcomes from investigator assessments to patient-centered outcomes in clinical research and care settings. The use of PROs in acne and rosacea trials is still limited, especially as a primary outcome,¹⁰ indicating an important opportunity for the field. Qualitative work done by Tan and colleagues¹¹ in reporting thematic analysis of letters written by patients to their acne and acne scars (a technique known as the projective personification) presented a creative, rigorous, and foundational approach to understanding the lived experiences of patients with this common condition, work that may inform PRO development. The journal continues to support the efforts of physicians who are making efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, including the Viewpoint by Fadadu et al¹² that discusses fossil fuel divestment by dermatology societies as a key action intersecting with human health and health equity.

JAMA Network welcomed Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, PhD, MD, MAS, as Editor in Chief in the summer of 2022. Dr Bibbins-Domingo brings a wealth of leadership and expertise in health equity research and public health epidemiology. In her new role, she is leading important initiatives to improve transparency in research¹³ and broaden public access to published research literature.¹⁴ JAMA also appointed Preeti Malani, MD, MSJ, as Deputy Editor/Editorial Director of Equity, along with Associate Editors of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at each JAMA specialty journal, Dr Malani will lead innovation of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across the network. JAMA Dermatology welcomed Mya Roberson, MSPH, PhD, Vanderbilt University, as the inaugural Associate Editor of Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity to lead further development of journal initiatives in partnership with this network team.¹⁵ The journal’s Editorial Fellowship pilot program¹⁶ will launch in the summer of 2023, with a call for applications in the late winter, for underrepresented-in-medicine individuals who are interested in gaining medical publishing skills and experience while working closely with the JAMA Dermatology editorial leadership team.

During the past year, JAMA Dermatology also welcomed 2 new Associate Editors, An-Wen Chan, MD, DPhil, University of Toronto, and Howa Yeung, MD, MSc, Emory University. The journal also welcomed a new editorial manager, Cassandra Wood, BS, who brings many years of editorial expertise and publishing excellence to our team. The journal thanks outgoing Associate Editor, Arash Mostaghimi, MD, MPH, MPA, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, for his 5 years of excellence and service to the journal.

I personally thank the entire editorial team, all of the authors and reviewers¹⁷ who contributed their time and expertise, and our readers for their sustained contributions to the journal and its educational mission. With the return of national and international in-person meetings, hopefully this upcoming year will bring more opportunities for connection and reintegration to the members of this specialty. Nonetheless, the energetic, ongoing commitment of dermatologists to advancing knowledge in the field (as highlighted in this journal) is remarkable. I hope that during the year ahead the specialty will continue to innovate and elevate the art and science of dermatology toward the aim of providing the best care for patients.

Corresponding Author: Kanade Shinkai, MD, PhD, Department of Dermatology, University of California, San Francisco, 1701 Divisadero St, 3rd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94115 (kanade.shinkai@jamanetwork.org).

Published Online: March 22, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2022.6073

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.