Onwards and upwards

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The October issue of The Lancet Neurology marks a new phase in the development of the journal. This month a third section of the journal—Primary Research (red)—introduces our first selection of clinical research Articles (starting on page 605). The Lancet Neurology offers a fast-track peer-review process, enabling important clinical research to reach you, the reader, quickly. The Articles in this issue of the journal have all been published online (http://www.thelancet.com/journals/eop) within, on average, 5 weeks of submission to the journal. But speed does not mean compromised quality—all Articles selected for peer review undergo the same rigorous clinical and statistical review as papers submitted to our parent journal to ensure that only the best are selected for publication. And to put these papers into context, the Reflection and Reaction section contains commentaries linked to some of the Articles published in the print issue of the journal (see pages 588 and 589). The Review section also deserves mention this month. Each of the reviews has been specifically commissioned to accompany five seminars to be given at the World Congress of Neurology in Sydney, Australia (November 5–11). The purpose of the reviews is to act as a useful accompaniment to the congress seminars for delegates attending the meeting, and as an interesting update for all of our readers as each covers a subject that has not yet been featured in the journal. Finally, as The Lancet Neurology moves forward into a new phase of development, it is appropriate to take stock of what has been achieved since the journal launched in May 2002. With a 2004 Impact Factor of 8·34, The Lancet Neurology is now the number 1 journal in the clinical neurology category. This success is in no small way due to the valued contributions of many authors and the invaluable advice of a huge number of peer reviewers over the past 4 years. Thank you.