Journal profile · Medicine-Internal Medicine
Kidney Medicine
ISSN 2590-0595 · Elsevier · United States
Kidney Medicine: CAS Zone 3 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 4.1 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,590; review about 133 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 274 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Kidney Medicine is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 3 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Dialysis and Renal Disease Management, Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes and Renal Diseases and Glomerulopathies, together about 47.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Nephrology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
An Official Journal of the National Kidney FoundationKidney Medicine ®, an official journal of the National Kidney Foundation, is an open access journal focused on clinical medicine in nephrology and hypertension. The mission of Kidney Medicine is to disseminate knowledge relevant to the care of people with or at risk of kidney diseases. Articles appearing in Kidney Medicine include original research, case reports and reviews. Kidney Medicine adheres to the high standards associated with all of the National Kidney Foundation journals. Original research articles span a wide range of topics, including qualitative and quantitative research; health care policy, delivery, and disparities research; and epidemiology and outcomes research. Recognizing a critical deficit in this area, Kidney Medicine also eagerly seeks research focused on assessing and improving nephrology education and patient reported outcomes.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Medicine-Internal Medicine
Editor-in-chief Mahboob RahmanPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 1%); most named United States 49, Canada 8, Australia 6, India 4, Romania 3 (88 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Dialysis and Renal Disease ManagementMedicine23.2%
- Chronic Kidney Disease and DiabetesMedicine15.1%
- Renal Diseases and GlomerulopathiesMedicine8.8%
- Acute Kidney Injury ResearchMedicine7.7%
- Renal Transplantation Outcomes and TreatmentsMedicine5.8%
- Organ Donation and TransplantationMedicine3.4%
- Parathyroid Disorders and TreatmentsMedicine3.3%
- Central Venous Catheters and HemodialysisHealth Professions3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Urology & Nephrology | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Urology & Nephrology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
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 (publisher)
- 4.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.8LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 4.8Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.31LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.38LetPub ·
- h-index
- 46OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 373OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.96OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.4%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 99.56%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 202LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 1,522 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 312 | 312 | 66 |
| 2025 | 274 | 274 | 460 |
| 2024 | 173 | 173 | 961 |
| 2023 | 176 | 176 | 1,749 |
| 2022 | 178 | 178 | 2,285 |
| 2021 | 181 | 181 | 2,297 |
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 PubMed · to
Too few articlesOnly 1 articles from the last 24 months carry both submission and acceptance dates, too few for a median
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".
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 71 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 133 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 40 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 | USD 2,590 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 2,590 / EUR 2,420 / GBP 2,070 / JPY 321,240 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 2,400 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 2,710 | — | — |
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)
What to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 3,500 words
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
Article types accepted15, with length limits
- case reportCase Reports present interesting, rare, and/or novel situations that bring to the attention of the experienced practitioner and others newly described clinical …main text ≤ 1,500 words · abstract ≤ 200 words · figures and tables ≤ 4 · references ≤ 20
- case seriesA description of the clinical course of 11 or more actual individuals or patients with a condition of interest.Length not stated
- clinical trialClinical Trial Rationale & Objective Study Design Setting & Participants Intervention(s) Outcomes Results Limitations Conclusions Funding Trial RegistrationLength not stated
- decision analysis or cost-effectiveness analysisAn analysis that weighs choices in clinical care by modeling the projected consequences of different strategies to identify the optimal choice and/or to inform …Length not stated
- diagnostic test studyA study that compares the performance of 2 or more diagnostic tests or strategies.Length not stated
- editorialncerning a current issue in nephrology. Editorials are limited to 1,500 words and 1 figure, table, or box; in most cases, editorials havemain text ≤ 1,500 words · figures and tables ≤ 1 · references ≤ 20
- editorialsAn article that provides focused commentary and narrative analysis concerning a current issue in nephrology.Length not stated
- letters to the editorLetters should be in response to an article in Kidney Medicine and should not exceed 250 words (up to 5 references and 1 figure or table may also be included) a…main text ≤ 250 words · figures and tables ≤ 1 · references ≤ 5
- observational studyCohort, Case-Control, Cross-sectional, Case-Cohort, and Ecological Studies These studies observe and describe individuals or patients based on their exposure to…Length not stated
- original researchOriginal Research articles may evaluate pathogenesis, consequences, and treatment of kidney disease; kidney transplantation and dialysis therapies; and disorder…Length not stated
- perspectiveor of argument, and clinical relevance. Perspectives are limited to 3,000 words of body text and 4 figures/tables/boxes in total; an unstrumain text ≤ 3,000 words · abstract ≤ 200 words · figures and tables ≤ 4 · references ≤ 70
- reviewAn authoritative exploration of a clinical, translational, or basic science topic of interest to practitioners. Clinically focused Reviews should describe the t…main text ≤ 4,000 words · abstract ≤ 200 words · references ≤ 100
- reviewsAn authoritative exploration of a clinical, translational, or basic science topic of interest to practitioners.Length not stated
- systematic reviewA systematic review follows an explicit protocol to systematically identify, appraise, and synthesize the findings of studies that address a similar question; a…Length not stated
- systematic review or meta-analysisA systematic review follows an explicit protocol to systematically identify, appraise, and synthesize the findings of studies that address a similar question; a…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, Open access, Peer review, Self-archiving, Trial registration / reporting guidelines
- AI use Declaration of Generative AI in Scientific Writing
Where authors use generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process, authors should:Only use these technologies to improve readability and language, not to replace key researcher tasks such as interpreting data or drawing scientific conclusions.Apply the technology with human oversight and control, and carefully review and edit the result, as AI can genera…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship
Authorship In accordance with International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) recommendations, each author must meet all 4 of the following conditions; moreover, each person fulfilling these conditions must be listed as an author.(1) the individual made a substantial contribution to conception and design of the study, to data acquisition, or to data analysis and interpretation; and(2) t…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Potential Conflicts of Interest for Authors
Kidney Medicine's conflict of interest (COI) policies generally follow those of the ICMJE Recommendations. As described in the Support, [Financial Disclosure](#Financial Disclosure), and [Other Disclosures](#Other Disclosures) sections of this document, authors must disclose all relationships that could be viewed as a potential COI. Editors may use information in COI disclosures as the basis for e…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Sharing
Data sharing statement required for clinical trials Model summary
Data Sharing In recognition of the increased attention given to reproducibility of research findings, and to enhance opportunities for research collaboration, as of July 1, 2018, each manuscript reporting a clinical trial should include a data sharing statement. Of note, at this stage Kidney Medicine does not have a particular data sharing expectation (beyond the requirement to make data available…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Misconduct Handling Policy
Errata published for important errors Model summary
Misconduct Handling Policy The Kidney Medicine editors recognize their role in making all reasonable efforts to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record, and will generally follow COPE recommendations when they suspect or receive credible allegations of a breach of journal policies. Any reports of potential misconduct submitted to the journal should include as much detailed information as po…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access
Kidney Medicine is an open access journal: once published, all articles are immediately and permanently free to read and download. To provide open access, Kidney Medicine has an open access fee (also known as an article publishing charge, or APC), which needs to be paid by the authors or on their behalf, such as by their research funder or institution. We refer you to our Open Access information p…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Single-blind peer review Model summary
Kidney Medicine conducts single-blind review: authors' identities are not masked to the reviewers, but reviewers' identities are masked to the authors.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Self-archiving Prepublication Embargo
Kidney Medicine will not publish content that has already been disseminated online or in print. If the confidentiality of a Kidney Medicine article or its key elements is not maintained up to the point it is published by Kidney Medicine, the article's acceptance for publication may be forfeited. Further information is available in the Originality section of the Submission Policies.If an author's i…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Trial registration / reporting guidelines Clinical Trial Registration
To help limit publication bias and to aid in the identification of clinical trials for meta-analyses, Kidney Medicine requires that authors of manuscripts pertaining to clinical trials have prospectively registered their study in a public trials registry. Kidney Medicine defines a clinical trial as any research project that prospectively assigns participants to an intervention (with or without a c…
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
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- United States
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2590-0595
- Society / sponsor
- National Kidney Foundation
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Kidney Medicine
What CAS zone is Kidney Medicine in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Kidney Medicine is in Zone 3 of Medicine, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Urology & Nephrology. 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 Kidney Medicine?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 4.1; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 4.8, h-index 46.
How long does peer review take at Kidney Medicine?
The publisher reports about 133 days (submission to acceptance); authors report an average review time of about 12 weeks. 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.
What are the manuscript requirements of Kidney Medicine?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Manuscript length: ≤ 3,500 words; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Graphical abstract: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Kidney Medicine based?
Of the 88 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 1%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (49), Canada (8) and Australia (6). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Kidney Medicine?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Kidney Medicine is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Kidney Medicine open access, and what is the APC?
Kidney Medicine is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,590.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; 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: .