The Annals of Thoracic Surgery

The Annals of Thoracic Surgery
Title	The Annals of Thoracic Surgery
Discipline	Cardiothoracic surgery
Abbreviation	Ann. Thorac. Surg.
Publisher	Elsevier
Country	United States
History	1965–present
Frequency	Monthly
Impact	(see Impact and Reception)

The Annals of Thoracic Surgery is a peer-reviewed medical journal publishing original research, reviews, and clinical reports in cardiothoracic surgery. Established in 1965, the journal has served as a platform for surgeons, researchers, and institutions to disseminate advances related to cardiac surgery, thoracic oncology, and transplantation. Its readership spans academic centers, hospitals, and professional societies involved in cardiovascular care and surgical innovation.

History

The journal was founded amid a period of rapid development in cardiac surgery associated with figures such as John Gibbon, Michael DeBakey, Christian Barnard, Alfred Blalock, and Vivien Thomas and institutions including Cleveland Clinic, Massachusetts General Hospital, Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Guy's Hospital. Early issues reflected advances in extracorporeal circulation, valve repair, and coronary artery bypass influenced by events like the advent of the heart-lung machine and the work at Papworth Hospital and Stanford University Medical Center. Over decades the journal documented milestones connected to leaders such as Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center collaborators, Sir Magdi Yacoub, Norman Shumway, O. H. Frazier, Alain Carpentier, F. G. L. Wilkins, and centers including Royal Brompton Hospital and University of Pennsylvania Health System.

Scope and Content

The Annals covers clinical studies, randomized trials, case series, meta-analyses, technical notes, and guidelines related to procedures championed by practitioners at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, UCLA Medical Center, Karolinska University Hospital, Hopital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Toronto General Hospital, and Royal Victoria Hospital. Topics include coronary artery bypass grafting associated with teams like those at Baylor University Medical Center and Mount Sinai Hospital (New York), valve repair and replacement linked to work at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Brigham and Women's Hospital, thoracic oncology paralleling research at MD Anderson Cancer Center and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and lung transplantation reflecting experience at UCLA Health and UCSF Medical Center. The journal also publishes content on mechanical circulatory support exemplified by devices from Thoratec Corporation, outcomes research tied to registries such as the STS National Database, and perioperative care shaped by protocols from Mayo Clinic and Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

Editorial Leadership and Peer Review

Editorial leadership has included editors with affiliations across institutions like Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Duke University Hospital, Washington University in St. Louis, University of Michigan Hospitals, and University of California, San Diego Health. The peer-review process engages reviewers drawn from societies including the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, American Association for Thoracic Surgery, International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, and academic departments at Yale New Haven Hospital and Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Editorial policies have paralleled ethical standards promulgated by groups such as the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors and oversight practices found at publishers like Elsevier and Wolters Kluwer.

Abstracting and Indexing

The journal is indexed in major services used by clinicians and libraries associated with organizations such as PubMed, Medline, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science. Libraries at Harvard Medical School, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Stanford University, and University of Toronto include the title in catalogues and use metadata standards consistent with indexing by CrossRef and archival services like Portico and LOCKSS. Citation tracking and metrics reported by groups including Clarivate Analytics and Elsevier Scopus inform institutional assessments at centers such as Imperial College London and King's College London.

Impact and Reception

The journal's influence is reflected in citation relationships with landmark reports produced at Cleveland Clinic, Mount Sinai, Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Massachusetts General Hospital and in guideline citations by societies such as the European Society of Cardiology and American College of Cardiology. Reception among clinicians and academicians at Stanford Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, University of California, San Francisco, University College London Hospitals, and Scripps Health is evidenced by frequent reference in reviews, conference presentations at meetings of the American Heart Association and European Society of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, and incorporation into curricula at medical schools including University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Notable Articles and Contributions

Notable contributions include early reports on cardiopulmonary bypass and valve prostheses influenced by work from John Gibbon and Michael DeBakey, case series informing lung cancer surgery paralleling research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and MD Anderson Cancer Center, and transplantation outcomes comparable to studies from Stanford University and Cleveland Clinic. The journal has published influential trials and technical descriptions that intersect with device development at Edwards Lifesciences, Medtronic, and St. Jude Medical, as well as outcome analyses referenced by registries like the Society of Thoracic Surgeons National Database and guideline committees from American Association for Thoracic Surgery and European Respiratory Society.

Category:Cardiology journals Category:Surgery journals Category:Medical journals published in the United States