Journal profile · RHEUMATOLOGY
ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY
ISSN 1478-6362 · BioMed Central · ENGLAND · Bimonthly · Founded 1999
ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY: CAS Zone 2 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 5.4; fully open access; APC about USD 3,790; median 132 days to acceptance (112 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: 0%; 256 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY is published by BioMed Central and is in Zone 2 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Rheumatoid Arthritis Research and Therapies, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Research and Osteoarthritis Treatment and Mechanisms, together about 42% of its articles. Its main subfields are Rheumatology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Established in 1999, Arthritis Research and Therapy is an international, open access, peer-reviewed journal, publishing original articles in the area of musculoskeletal research and therapy as well as, reviews, commentaries and reports. A major focus of the journal is on the immunologic processes leading to inflammation, damage and repair as they relate to autoimmune rheumatic and musculoskeletal conditions, and which inform the translation of this knowledge into advances in clinical care. Original basic, translational and clinical research is considered for publication along with results of early and late phase therapeutic trials, especially as they pertain to the underpinning science that informs clinical observations in interventional studies. We will not consider papers that present work derived solely from publicly available data sets, especially using Mendelian Randomization methods unless they are accompanied by new data that reveal or confirm new biological principles. Why publish your article with Arthritis Research & Therapy? Founded in 1999, we are one of the leading influencers in rheumatology. With our unique focus on translational research we address key clinical challenges and advocate the latest advancements in our field, reaching a large global audience. By combining rigorous expert assessment, we provide a swift service with the highest standards. 94% of our published authors would resubmit to this journal.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): RHEUMATOLOGY
Editor-in-chief Christopher BuckleyPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 3 in mainland China (about 3%); most named United States 33, United Kingdom 13, Australia 7, Japan 5, Germany 5 (93 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Rheumatoid Arthritis Research and TherapiesMedicine22%
- Systemic Lupus Erythematosus ResearchMedicine10.3%
- Osteoarthritis Treatment and MechanismsMedicine9.7%
- Spondyloarthritis Studies and TreatmentsMedicine8.7%
- Systemic Sclerosis and Related DiseasesMedicine5.4%
- Autoimmune and Inflammatory Disorders ResearchMedicine4.1%
- T-cell and B-cell ImmunologyImmunology and Microbiology4%
- Monoclonal and Polyclonal Antibodies ResearchMedicine3.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Rheumatology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Rheumatology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Rheumatology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
MEDLINEEmbaseCASPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS, Semantic Scholar
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 5.4LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 5.4Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 5.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 8.7LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.59LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.42LetPub ·
- h-index
- 211OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 5,130OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.4OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 1.9%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 245LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 6,000,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 7,095 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 185 | 185 | 86 |
| 2025 | 256 | 256 | 1,177 |
| 2024 | 230 | 230 | 2,363 |
| 2023 | 250 | 250 | 4,219 |
| 2022 | 286 | 286 | 6,060 |
| 2021 | 306 | 306 | 8,493 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
132 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 89 days – 180 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 15 days (112 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 148 days
- Sample
- 112 articles with submission and acceptance dates (501 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 14 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 0%LetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 11 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 14 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | EUR 3,190 / USD 3,790 / GBP 2,790 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 3,690 / EUR 3,090 / GBP 2,690 | — | — | |
| LetPub | GBP 2,490 / USD 3,390 / EUR 2,890 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | GBP 2,790 / USD 3,790 / EUR 3,190 | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Open calls for papers1, by deadline
Publisher websiteArticle types accepted5
- commentFormatting guidelines for specific article types can be found below. Research Review Comment Editorial CorrespondenceLength not stated
- correspondenceFormatting guidelines for specific article types can be found below. Research Review Comment Editorial CorrespondenceLength not stated
- editorialFormatting guidelines for specific article types can be found below. Research Review Comment Editorial CorrespondenceLength not stated
- researchFormatting guidelines for specific article types can be found below. Research Review Comment Editorial CorrespondenceLength not stated
- reviewFormatting guidelines for specific article types can be found below. Research Review Comment Editorial CorrespondenceLength not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteData availability, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- Data availability Formatting the 'Availability of data and materials' section of your manuscript
The following format for the 'Availability of data and materials section of your manuscript should be used:
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Licensing and copyright
Creative Commons licences Open access articles in Springer Nature journals are published under Creative Commons licences. These provide an industry-standard framework to support easy re-use of open access material. Under Creative Commons licences, authors retain copyright of their articles. Arthritis Research & Therapy articles are published open access under a CC BY-NC-ND (Creative Commons Attrib…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Benefits of open access
Publishing open access (OA) offers a number of benefits, including greater reach and readership for your work: Cited more 1.6x more citations of OA articles than non-OA articles across all subjects Downloaded more 4x more downloads of OA articles than non-OA articles Greater impact 2.5x more Altmetric attention. OA articles attracted 1.9x more news mentions and 1.2x more policy mentions Open acces…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review policy
Editorial policies are hosted on the BioMed Central website. Model summary
Peer review is the process used to evaluate the quality of a manuscript before publication. Independent researchers in the relevant field assess submitted manuscripts to check their validity and robustness. Their feedback guides editors in making publication decisions. Typically, two or more experts evaluate each manuscript based on three main criteria: scientific robustness: is the research metho…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- BioMed Central
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1999
- ISSN
- 1478-6362
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY
What CAS zone is ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY is in Zone 2 of Medicine, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Rheumatology; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.4; CiteScore 8.7, h-index 211.
How long does peer review take at ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY?
Based on the dates recorded on 112 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 132 days (interquartile range 89–180 days); authors report an average review time of about 14 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “0%”. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Where are the editorial board members of ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY based?
Of the 93 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 3 (about 3%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (33), United Kingdom (13) and Australia (7). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists MEDLINE, Embase and CAS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY open access, and what is the APC?
ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 3,790.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .