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Authors are the souls of any journal, and deserve much respect. To publish a journal manuscripts are needed from authors. Authors have a great responsibility for producing facts of their work in terms of number and results truthfully and an individual honesty is expected from authors in this regards. Both ways its true "No authors-No manuscripts-No journals" and "No journals–No manuscripts–No authors". Reviewing a manuscript is also a very responsible and important task of any peer-reviewed journal and to be taken seriously. It needs knowledge on the subject, sincerity, honesty and determination. Although the process of reviewing a manuscript is a time consuming task butit is expected to give one's best remarks within the time frame of the journal.
Salient features of the JCDR: It is a biomedical, multidisciplinary (including all medical and dental specialities), e-journal, with wide scope and extensive author support. At the same time, a free text of manuscript is available in HTML and PDF format. There is fast growing authorship and readership with JCDR as this can be judged by the number of articles published in it i e; in Feb 2007 of its first issue, it contained 5 articles only, and now in its recent volume published in April 2011, it contained 67 manuscripts. This e-journal is fulfilling the commitments and objectives sincerely, (as stated by Editor-in-chief in his preface to first edition) i e; to encourage physicians through the internet, especially from the developing countries who witness a spectrum of disease and acquire a wealth of knowledge to publish their experiences to benefit the medical community in patients care. I also feel that many of us have work of substance, newer ideas, adequate clinical materials but poor in medical writing and hesitation to submit the work and need help. JCDR provides authors help in this regards.
Timely publication of journal: Publication of manuscripts and bringing out the issue in time is one of the positive aspects of JCDR and is possible with strong support team in terms of peer reviewers, proof reading, language check, computer operators, etc. This is one of the great reasons for authors to submit their work with JCDR. Another best part of JCDR is "Online first Publications" facilities available for the authors. This facility not only provides the prompt publications of the manuscripts but at the same time also early availability of the manuscripts for the readers.
Indexation and online availability: Indexation transforms the journal in some sense from its local ownership to the worldwide professional community and to the public.JCDR is indexed with Embase & EMbiology, Google Scholar, Index Copernicus, Chemical Abstracts Service, Journal seek Database, Indian Science Abstracts, to name few of them. Manuscriptspublished in JCDR are available on major search engines ie; google, yahoo, msn.
In the era of fast growing newer technologies, and in computer and internet friendly environment the manuscripts preparation, submission, review, revision, etc and all can be done and checked with a click from all corer of the world, at any time. Of course there is always a scope for improvement in every field and none is perfect. To progress, one needs to identify the areas of one's weakness and to strengthen them.
It is well said that "happy beginning is half done" and it fits perfectly with JCDR. It has grown considerably and I feel it has already grown up from its infancy to adolescence, achieving the status of standard online e-journal form Indian continent since its inception in Feb 2007. This had been made possible due to the efforts and the hard work put in it. The way the JCDR is improving with every new volume, with good quality original manuscripts, makes it a quality journal for readers. I must thank and congratulate Dr Hemant Jain, Editor-in-Chief JCDR and his team for their sincere efforts, dedication, and determination for making JCDR a fast growing journal.
Every one of us: authors, reviewers, editors, and publisher are responsible for enhancing the stature of the journal. I wish for a great success for JCDR."
Thanking you
With sincere regards
Dr. Rajendra Kumar Ghritlaharey, M.S., M. Ch., FAIS
Associate Professor,
Department of Paediatric Surgery, Gandhi Medical College & Associated
Kamla Nehru & Hamidia Hospitals Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462 001 (India)
E-mail: drrajendrak1@rediffmail.com
On May 11,2011
Dr. Shankar P.R.
"On looking back through my Gmail archives after being requested by the journal to write a short editorial about my experiences of publishing with the Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research (JCDR), I came across an e-mail from Dr. Hemant Jain, Editor, in March 2007, which introduced the new electronic journal. The main features of the journal which were outlined in the e-mail were extensive author support, cash rewards, the peer review process, and other salient features of the journal.
Over a span of over four years, we (I and my colleagues) have published around 25 articles in the journal. In this editorial, I plan to briefly discuss my experiences of publishing with JCDR and the strengths of the journal and to finally address the areas for improvement.
My experiences of publishing with JCDR: Overall, my experiences of publishing withJCDR have been positive. The best point about the journal is that it responds to queries from the author. This may seem to be simple and not too much to ask for, but unfortunately, many journals in the subcontinent and from many developing countries do not respond or they respond with a long delay to the queries from the authors 1. The reasons could be many, including lack of optimal secretarial and other support. Another problem with many journals is the slowness of the review process. Editorial processing and peer review can take anywhere between a year to two years with some journals. Also, some journals do not keep the contributors informed about the progress of the review process. Due to the long review process, the articles can lose their relevance and topicality. A major benefit with JCDR is the timeliness and promptness of its response. In Dr Jain's e-mail which was sent to me in 2007, before the introduction of the Pre-publishing system, he had stated that he had received my submission and that he would get back to me within seven days and he did!
Most of the manuscripts are published within 3 to 4 months of their submission if they are found to be suitable after the review process. JCDR is published bimonthly and the accepted articles were usually published in the next issue. Recently, due to the increased volume of the submissions, the review process has become slower and it ?? Section can take from 4 to 6 months for the articles to be reviewed. The journal has an extensive author support system and it has recently introduced a paid expedited review process. The journal also mentions the average time for processing the manuscript under different submission systems - regular submission and expedited review.
Strengths of the journal: The journal has an online first facility in which the accepted manuscripts may be published on the website before being included in a regular issue of the journal. This cuts down the time between their acceptance and the publication. The journal is indexed in many databases, though not in PubMed. The editorial board should now take steps to index the journal in PubMed. The journal has a system of notifying readers through e-mail when a new issue is released. Also, the articles are available in both the HTML and the PDF formats. I especially like the new and colorful page format of the journal. Also, the access statistics of the articles are available. The prepublication and the manuscript tracking system are also helpful for the authors.
Areas for improvement: In certain cases, I felt that the peer review process of the manuscripts was not up to international standards and that it should be strengthened. Also, the number of manuscripts in an issue is high and it may be difficult for readers to go through all of them. The journal can consider tightening of the peer review process and increasing the quality standards for the acceptance of the manuscripts. I faced occasional problems with the online manuscript submission (Pre-publishing) system, which have to be addressed.
Overall, the publishing process with JCDR has been smooth, quick and relatively hassle free and I can recommend other authors to consider the journal as an outlet for their work."
Dr. P. Ravi Shankar
KIST Medical College, P.O. Box 14142, Kathmandu, Nepal.
E-mail: ravi.dr.shankar@gmail.com
On April 2011 Anuradha
Dear team JCDR, I would like to thank you for the very professional and polite service provided by everyone at JCDR. While i have been in the field of writing and editing for sometime, this has been my first attempt in publishing a scientific paper.Thank you for hand-holding me through the process.
Dr. Anuradha
E-mail: anuradha2nittur@gmail.com
On Jan 2020
Reviews
Full Version
Dry Eye Syndrome: A Review
Correspondence Address :
DR. MOHNISH GOPAL.
E-mail: harshita_bnl@yahoo.com
Dry eye syndrome is a recent discovery in the group of distinct treatable ocular diseases. This condition has been observed to be increasing wildly in the recent past due to civilizational changes. Dry eye is also referred to as tear film instability, a condition that typically develops from deficiencies of one or more components of the biologically complex pre-ocular tear film. Tears are composed of three layers: the outer oily, lipid layer, the middle watery, lacrimal layer, and the inner mucous or mucin layer. Each layer is produced by a different part of the eye for example, the lacrimal gland produces the lacrimal layer. Therefore, a problem originating in any part of the eye can result in dry eyes. Clinically, dry eye cases represent a mixed picture of an allergy, an infection, and either drug or chemical toxicity. Therefore, dry eyes are often considered to be an accompaniment of Spring Catarrh, Follicular/ Trachomatous conjunctivitis, Glaucoma, Aphakia, and so on in clinical practice. Dry eye conditions are classified into those with adequate aqueous tear production and those with aqueous tear deficiency. Lacrimal gland tear production can be determined clinically by means of a Schirmer test without anaesthesia (Schirmer 1) or by other more sophisticated tests for the evaluation of aqueous tear production and turnover. Certain specific pathological tests can differentially diagnose cases with aqueous tear production and aqueous tear deficiency. The market availability of artificial tear solutions or ocular surface wetting/lubricating eye drops have played a significant role in the management of dry eye.
Dry eye syndrome, Tear film, Sjogren’s syndrome, Aqueous tear production, Aqueous tear deficiency, Schirmer test, Meibomian gland,
Introduction
An ocular surface disease results from a multi-factorial, heterogeneous disorder of the pre-ocular tear film. This disorder of the tear film is also termed dry eye. There are numerous disturbing factors that disrupt the equilibrium of the complex and stable system formed by the tear film and the ocular surface (1). Dry eye, either alone or in combination with other conditions, is a frequent cause of eye irritation that leads patients to seek ophthalmologic care (2).
The disease is usually not curable and may cause frustration to both patients and physicians although its symptoms often improve with treatment. Visual morbidity may cause dry eye and may compromise the results of corneal surgery.
The dry eye syndrome varies in severity, duration, and aetiology (3). It has several causes. It occurs especially during menopause as a part of the natural aging process and as a side effect of systemic medications, such as antihistamines, antidepressants, medications for blood pressure and Parkinson's disease , and birth control pills. These medications decrease tear production and may lead to an increase in the severity of the symptoms. A dry, dusty, or windy climate, home or office air conditioning, or a dry heating system can also cause increased tear evaporation, resulting in dry eyes. Insufficient blinking during prolonged computer use can also lead to dry eyes. Long-term use of contact lenses is another cause. In reality, dry eyes are the most common complaint among contact lens wearers. The rubbing of the lenses against the conjunctiva seems to be a cause of dry eyes, making them wearers uncomfortable. Incomplete closure of the eyelids, eyelid diseases, and a deficiency of the tear-producing glands are other causes. Recent research suggests that smoking can also increase the risk of dry eye syndrome.
Eyelid surgery or blepharoplasty has recently gained popularity for enhancing the appearances of individuals. Dry eye complaints are now occasionally associated with incomplete closure of eyelids following such a procedure. The elimination of these factors often lead to marked improvement in symptoms and may cure the problem to a certain extent. Dry eyes are also a symptom of systemic diseases, such as Lupus, Rheumatoid arthritis, Rosacea, and Sjogren's syndrome (a triad of dry eyes, dry mouth, and either rheumatoid arthritis or lupus). The dry eye syndrome is more common in women, possibly due to hormone fluctuations. In some patients, the dry eye is caused either by a nonreversible deficiency of tear production or by a chronic condition leading to increased evaporation, such as blepharitis. In such cases, the disease may exhibit a chronic nature, with waxing and waning severity of symptoms or a gradual increase in the severity of symptoms with time. Many patients who have moderate to severe dry eye have been observed to develop reversible conjunctival squamous metaplasia and punctate epithelial erosions of the conjunctiva and cornea. Complications, such as ocular surface keratinization; corneal ulceration, scarring, thinning, or neo-vascularization, microbial keratitis, and sterile corneal keratolysis with possible perforation and severe visual loss are rarely observed in patients with severe dry eye.
Diagnostic classification
Dry eye conditions are classified, based on the ability of the lacrimal gland to produce tears, into those with adequate tear production, and those with tear deficiency. Meibomian gland dysfunction that results in lipid tear deficiency is observed in a majority of patients with adequate tear fluid in dry eye. Aqueous tear deficiency can be subclassified into non-Sjogren's syndrome and Sjogren's syndrome (SS) groups. Patients with non-Sjogren's tear deficiency have less severe symptoms and ocular surface disease than those with SS (4).
Sjogren’s syndrom
Until recently, dry eye was considered to be a difficult to treat and time-consuming clinical condition. This led many patients to live with the condition, and many ophthalmologists to shy away from actively seeking out and treating them. The emergence of several new-generation artificial tears and wetting agents, which can be used as a prescription for dry eye medication, and new dietary supplements have made the ailment much more manageable. According to ophthalmologists, patients can be treated effectively and efficiently now. Also, a general awareness of dry eye has arisen. Pharmaceutical companies, media-marketing campaigns, and medical information on the internet have publicized the condition and have informed people regarding potential treatments. These factors have made it easy for physicians to actively seek out and treat dry eye patients. Effective diagnosis is the key for the classification and treatment of dry eye (31). The most important aspects of caring for patients with dry eye are to educate them about the chronic nature of the disease process, and to provide specific instructions for therapeutic regimen. The frequency and extent of the follow-up evaluation will depend on the severity of disease, the therapeutic approach, and the response to the therapy.
JCDR services were used in research of this article.
- Emerging Sources Citation Index (Web of Science, thomsonreuters)
- Index Copernicus ICV 2017: 134.54
- Academic Search Complete Database
- Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
- Embase
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- Google Scholar
- HINARI Access to Research in Health Programme
- Indian Science Abstracts (ISA)
- Journal seek Database
- Popline (reproductive health literature)
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