International Journal of Inflammation Research
For Editors
A handling editor carries a manuscript from first assessment to decision. This page sets out what that involves at each step, and where a question stops being the editor’s to settle.
The handling sequence
From assessment to decision
First · Assess and declare
Read the manuscript against the Aims & Scope and confirm that inflammation is the object of the study. Check that the declarations are present and that the reporting is complete enough to review.
Declare any interest in the work, the authors or their institutions at this point, and hand the manuscript back if impartiality could reasonably be questioned. An editor takes no part in the assessment of their own submission.
Second · Select reviewers
Choose reviewers for subject expertise and independence from the work. Single-blind by default; double-blind review is available on request. Manuscripts that proceed to external peer review are normally evaluated by at least two independent subject-matter experts.
When double-blind review is requested, editors must ensure that author-identifying information is not shared with reviewers.
Third · Synthesize and decide
Editorial decisions are based on scope, scientific quality, methodological rigor, ethical compliance, reporting quality, and relevance to the journal.
Where reviewers disagree, the editor resolves the disagreement on the evidence rather than by counting recommendations, and says in the decision letter which points the authors must address. Record the reasoning that produced the decision.
Fourth · Escalate where required
Concerns about data integrity, originality, authorship or consent go to the editorial office rather than being resolved in the decision letter. The authors are given the opportunity to respond before any conclusion is reached.
Standing requirements
What holds at every step
Independence
Editorial decisions remain independent of fees, memberships, roles and paid services.
An editor's judgment is not subject to the commercial arrangements of the journal, and no editor is asked to take those arrangements into account.
Confidentiality
A manuscript under assessment is confidential. It is not shared outside the review process, and its content is not used before publication.
AI assistance
Reviewers must obtain journal permission before using AI to assist with a review. Any permitted use must be disclosed, and confidential manuscript content must not be uploaded where confidentiality cannot be assured.
Policy
The Editorial Policies govern; an editor applies them rather than setting them aside for a particular manuscript.
Where to go next
Pages
- Editorial PoliciesThe policies governing review, ethics and publication.
- Aims & ScopeWhat the journal considers, in detail.
- For ReviewersHow to assess a manuscript and report on it.
Also useful
- Editorial BoardThe editors responsible for review.
- Instructions for AuthorsManuscript preparation and submission requirements.
- About the JournalWhat the journal is, who it serves, and how it is run.