Journal profile · INTEGRATIVE & COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE
World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion
ISSN 1003-5257 · eISSN 2773-0751 · Elsevier
World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion: CAS Zone 4 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.1 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 1,000; 50 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 4 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Acupuncture Treatment Research Studies, Healthcare and Venom Research and Traditional Chinese Medicine Studies, together about 62.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Complementary and alternative medicine and Neurology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Original articles and reviews of clinical practice, scientific research, literature, theory and education of acupuncture medicine worldwide. limited, the focus of the journal includes, but is not confined to, clinical researches, case reports, summaries of clinical experiences, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, teaching researches, reviews, perspectives, standards and guidelines on acupuncture, moxibustion, tuina, cupping, massage, etc.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): INTEGRATIVE & COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE
Editor-in-chief Xiao-chun YuPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 39 in mainland China (about 63%); most named Mainland China 39, United States 10, South Korea 3, Hong Kong, China 2, United Kingdom 2 (62 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Acupuncture Treatment Research StudiesMedicine31.6%
- Healthcare and Venom ResearchMedicine16.8%
- Traditional Chinese Medicine StudiesMedicine14%
- Medical Research and TreatmentsMedicine6.7%
- Myofascial pain diagnosis and treatmentBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4%
- Complementary and Alternative Medicine StudiesMedicine3.3%
- Botulinum Toxin and Related Neurological DisordersMedicine2.2%
- Facial Nerve Paralysis Treatment and ResearchMedicine2%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Integrative & Complementary Medicine | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Integrative & Complementary Medicine | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Integrative & Complementary Medicine | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of ScienceEmbasePublisher website
Other: CNKI, Science Direct (SD), Chinese Science Citation Database (CSCD), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI)
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 (publisher)
- 1.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 1.7LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 1.7Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.26LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.38LetPub ·
- h-index
- 15OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 51OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.22OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 36.4%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 65.71%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 46LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,242 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 37 | 37 | 3 |
| 2025 | 50 | 50 | 74 |
| 2024 | 45 | 45 | 84 |
| 2023 | 50 | 19 | 143 |
| 2022 | 50 | 3 | 176 |
| 2021 | 65 | 0 | 174 |
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
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 30 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double 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 1,000 | Yes | CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 0 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 1,000 | — | — |
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 prepare3 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 800 words
- Keywords
- 3–5
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
Article types accepted14
- academic discussionArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- brief communicationArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- brief communicationsArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- case reportArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- case reportsArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- editorialArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- guidelinesArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- invited articlesArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- original researchesArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- perspectiveArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- perspectivesArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- reviewArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- reviewsArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
- standardsArticle types considered for publication include original researches (clinical researches, experimental researches, literature researches, theory researches, te…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Plagiarism
- AI use Declaration of generative AI in scientific writing
Authors is encouraged to declare the use of generative AI in scientific writing upon submission of the paper. The following guidance refers only to the writing process, and not to the use of AI tools to analyse and draw insights from data as part of the research process: Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies should only be used in the writing process to improve the readability and language of…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship
For transparency, we require authors to submit an author statement file outlining their individual contributions to the paper using the relevant CRediT roles: Conceptualization; Data curation; Formal analysis; Funding acquisition; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration; Resources; Software; Supervision; Validation; Visualization; Roles/Writing - original draft; Writing - review & editi…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
Starting from January 2024, all authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include: EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Ethical Approval of Studies and Informed Consent
For human or animal experimental investigations, appropriate institutional review board or ethics committee approval is required, and such approval, including the official approval code, should be stated in the methods section of the manuscript. For those investigators who do not have formal ethics review committees, the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki should be followed (World …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Journal Publishing Agreement required upon acceptance Model summary
Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement'. An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form or a link to the online version of this agreement.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
Open access every peer-reviewed research article appearing in this journal will be published open access. This means that the article is universally and freely accessible via the internet in perpetuity, in an easily readable format immediately after publication. To provide open access, this journal has an open access fee (also known as an article publishing charge APC) which needs to be paid by th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors to determine suitability for publication in this journal. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to a minimum of two independent expert reviewers to assess the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected will be taken b…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Plagiarism
Plagiarism screening via iThenticate CrossCheck Model summary
Submissions to KeAi journals are automatically screened using iThenticate's CrossCheck within the editorial system to detect plagiarism issues including instances of overlapping and similar text in submitted manuscripts.
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
- ISSN
- 1003-5257
- Electronic ISSN
- 2773-0751
- 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 World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion
What CAS zone is World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion is in Zone 4 of Medicine, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Integrative & Complementary Medicine. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 1.1; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 1.7, h-index 15.
What are the manuscript requirements of World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 800 words; Keywords: 3–5; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation. 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 World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion based?
Of the 62 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 39 (about 63%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (39), United States (10) and South Korea (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists Web of Science and Embase; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion open access, and what is the APC?
World Journal of Acupuncture-Moxibustion is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 1,000.
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: .