- Aims and Scope
- Open access · CC BY 4.0
Aims and Scope
The Journal of Blood Pressure publishes research on blood pressure in health and disease: its physiology and regulation, its measurement, hypertension in the clinic, and blood pressure in populations.
What the journal sets out to do
- To publish rigorous research on how blood pressure is regulated and how its regulation fails, from molecular and vascular mechanisms to whole-body physiology.
- To advance the measurement of blood pressure, including office, ambulatory and home monitoring and the validation of devices.
- To report evidence that informs the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of hypertension in adults and children.
- To describe the distribution and determinants of blood pressure in populations, and the organization of care.
- To make this research openly available, so that researchers, clinicians and educators can read and reuse it freely.
Research areas
JBP considers research on any aspect of blood pressure. The four areas below are illustrative and form part of a wider field. A topic that is not named is within scope when it addresses blood pressure or its regulation, measurement, disorders or population distribution.
Physiology and regulation
Vascular function and endothelium, baroreflex and autonomic control, renal sodium handling, the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, sympathetic activity, vascular remodeling, and experimental and genetic models.
Measurement and monitoring
Office, ambulatory and home blood pressure measurement, central and cuffless methods, blood pressure variability and circadian patterns, device validation and measurement in special populations.
Hypertension in the clinic
Diagnosis, primary, secondary and resistant hypertension, hypertension in pregnancy, target-organ damage, cardiovascular and renal outcomes, and pharmacological and lifestyle treatment, in adults and children.
Populations and prevention
Epidemiology and risk factors such as obesity, salt intake and physical activity, screening and detection, trends across regions, health inequities, and the organization and delivery of hypertension care.
Contributions from the basic, clinical, pharmacological, nutritional, epidemiological, behavioral and data sciences are welcome when they address a question about blood pressure.
Designs and approaches welcomed
JBP considers quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods research. Study designs are reported within the article types listed below; clinical trials, cohort studies and qualitative studies, for example, are submitted as Original Research.
Experimental and mechanistic
Studies in humans, animals, tissues and cells that explain how blood pressure is controlled.
Observational
Cohort, case-control, cross-sectional and ecological studies, including analyses of registries and routinely collected data.
Intervention
Randomized and non-randomized trials of drugs, devices, diet, exercise and care models.
Measurement and diagnostic
Validation, accuracy and comparison of measurement methods, devices and diagnostic thresholds.
Evidence synthesis
Systematic reviews, meta-analyses and other reviews of the evidence on a defined question.
Qualitative and implementation
Interview, focus-group and participatory research, and studies of how hypertension care is delivered.
What makes a manuscript a fit
Manuscripts are assessed for their relevance to blood pressure, the soundness of their methods and whether their conclusions are proportionate to the evidence. Basic, clinical and population studies are all considered.
Case Reports
Case Reports, including short case series, are accepted when the case carries a lesson for the understanding or management of blood pressure disorders, such as an unusual cause, presentation or response to treatment.
Commentaries and Letters
Commentaries and Letters are accepted when they make a reasoned argument, supported by evidence and cited sources, on a question about blood pressure or on work published in JBP.
Reviews
Reviews are accepted when they synthesize the evidence on a defined question and reach conclusions proportionate to it. Unsupported opinion, meaning assertion without evidence or reasoned argument, is outside the journal's scope.
Article types
The journal publishes the article types below. Guidance on the structure, abstract and reporting standard for each type is given in the Instructions for Authors.
- Original Research
- Empirical studies of any design, including experimental, observational, interventional and qualitative studies.
- Review
- Narrative or thematic reviews that synthesize the literature on a defined question.
- Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
- Systematic syntheses of evidence, with or without meta-analysis, including scoping reviews.
- Methods
- New, adapted or validated methods for measurement, analysis or evaluation, and protocols for planned studies.
- Short Communication
- Concise reports of a focused or preliminary finding.
- Case Report
- Individual cases or short case series with a lesson for blood pressure research or care.
- Commentary
- Evidence-based argument on a current question or on published research.
- Letter
- Brief responses to articles published in JBP, or short observations of relevance to the field.
Where a manuscript sits between types, authors choose the closest type and explain the choice in the cover letter, and the editors confirm the classification. A scoping review is classified as a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, a study protocol as Methods, and a short case series as a Case Report.
Scope questions
Is my topic within scope?
A manuscript is within scope when it addresses blood pressure or hypertension, whatever its discipline or setting. If you are unsure, send the title and abstract to the editorial office at info@openaccesspub.org before submitting.
Does JBP consider clinical studies?
Yes. Clinical trials, cohort studies and diagnostic studies of hypertension are considered, and are submitted as Original Research.
Does JBP consider studies in children?
Yes. Studies of blood pressure and hypertension in children and adolescents are within scope.
Can I submit work that has been posted as a preprint?
Yes. Posting a preprint is compatible with submission to JBP. Cite the preprint in the cover letter.
Preparing a submission
Read the Instructions for Authors and the Editorial Policies before submitting.