Asian Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is moving forward to a new phase in its development thanks to the invaluable help of many individuals through their respective roles and expertise. As the official Journal of the Asian Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, the internationally recognised regional association of 21 countries in Asia covering a population of billions and 1 of the 5 regional associations of this specialty in the world, it is only fair to expect that a scientific journal should be produced in an international language and be widely distributed. The Association has always been generous in its support of the Journal production and its financial input has enabled the Journal to be published without interruption for the past 17 years.
More recently, a Journal website has been established and website development is proceeding with the ultimate aim of complete online submission, online peer review, and a download facility for published articles in the near future. The Journal has also benefited from the goodwill of a large number of colleagues from Asia and other continents who, for many years, have generously contributed to the peer review process. The Editorial Board Members and other manuscript reviewers are selected to evaluate manuscripts based on their expertise in the subject concerned. In this issue, in addition to changes in layout, you will also notice the listing of an International Editorial Advisory Board, composed of individuals selected and invited on the basis of their academic and editorial credentials and their ability and willingness to advise on the further development of the Journal. Needless to say, additional members will be periodically recruited to join this advisory board. Their input will no doubt bring the Journal ever closer to achieving our goal of maximum scientific impact and maximum reader-friendliness.
Asian member countries communicate using a number of different languages. The use of English in many countries has enabled better communication and advanced the level of education among individuals through the exchange of information and ideas. The Journal is therefore an important conduit for education and communication, serving not only members of our profession and discipline within Asia, but also providing others outside Asia with a view of our work, both clinically and scientifically. This is particularly significant when the subject of an article has a special regional importance, as demonstrated in this issue by the paper on oral submucous fibrosis from Sri Lanka1 and the Viewpoint from India2 commenting on that topic. Oral submucous fibrosis is an important disease in Asia with implications for a number of countries outside Asia, including many western countries where the disease has been imported through immigration.
Asian Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery serves to provide a forum for expertise-sharing among those of us in Asia who are involved in the treatment of these patients and, at the same time, aims to provide a valuable resource for colleagues outside the region who seek to learn about the disease from our experience. Of course, the Journal also functions as any scientific journal would, and we aim to encourage the publication of original scientific and clinical contributions of ever higher quality for the benefit of readers in Asia and beyond.
Nabil Samman
Editor-in-Chief
Asian Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
References
1. Ariyawardana A, Nawagamuwa T, Ranasinghe AW, Sitheeque M, Vithanaarachchi N. Conservative management of oral submucous fibrosis. Asian J Oral Maxillofac Surg 2005;17:26-30.
2. Gunaseelan R. Oral submucous fibrosis. Asian J Oral Maxillofac Surg 2005;17:38-39.
Asian J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2005;17:5.
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