The publication of the Journal Citation Reports (JCR) in 2026 marked an important milestone for Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (APM). Following the journal’s first Journal Impact Factor (JIF) of 3.2 for 2024, APM achieved a JIF of 3.6 for 2025. The journal currently ranks 17th among 72 journals in the JCR, under the anesthesiology category. This places JCR among the first quartile (Q1) of impactful journals in anesthesiology. As an Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI)-indexed journal, APM is not yet included in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) category. However, when benchmarked against SCIE-indexed anesthesiology journals, APM is 14th among the 34 journals. These achievements reflect the journal’s growing visibility, influence, and recognition internationally. The major bibliometric achievements of APM are summarized in Fig. 1.
The journal’s progress is also evident in other bibliometric indicators. APM’s CiteScore has shown steady growth, increasing from 2.3 in 2023 to 3.5 in 2024 and 4.1 in 2025 (Scopus preview - Scopus - Anesthesia and Pain Medicine). Such consistent improvement across multiple metrics suggests that the journal’s recent success is not attributable to a single publication or short-term trend. Instead, it reflects sustained engagement from authors, reviewers, and readers.
One of the strengths of APM lies in its broad academic foundation. As the official journal supported by twelve subsocieties of the Korean Society of Anesthesiologists, APM draws upon expertise spanning virtually the entire spectrum of the specialty, including perioperative medicine, critical care, pain medicine, neuroanesthesia, neuromuscular research, pediatric and obstetric anesthesia, regional anesthesia, cardiothoracic and vascular anesthesia, transplantation anesthesia, airway management, geriatric anesthesia, ambulatory anesthesia, and anesthetic pharmacology. This multidisciplinary foundation allows the journal to address a wide range of clinically relevant topics. Topic diversity has been an important driver of the journal’s continued growth and increasing international relevance.
The growing influence of APM is also reflected in the performance of its published articles. Recent highly cited and frequently accessed publications have addressed topics including pediatric use of sugammadex [1], opioid-free anesthesia [2], hemodynamic management in obstetric anesthesia [3], enhanced recovery after surgery implementation [4], and multimodal strategies for chronic pain management after spine surgery [5]. The attention these papers have received demonstrates both their clinical relevance and academic value. The various topics represented among these publications reflect the broad scope of our journal and the diverse interests of our readers.
Our journal’s achievements are the result of a collective effort. We are deeply grateful to the twelve subspecialty societies for their unwavering support, as well as to our authors, reviewers, editorial board members, and readers. Their contributions have helped strengthen the journal’s scientific quality, broaden its readership, and expand its international presence.
Achieving a JIF of 3.6 is an important milestone but it represents only one step in our long journey. The continued increase in citation metrics, the growing diversity of submitted and published research, and the expanding international readership of our journal provide strong evidence that APM is moving in the right direction. As an ESCI-indexed journal, APM now aims to be included in the SCIE category as its next major milestone. Yet, indexing is not an end in itself. Importantly, our enduring mission is to serve as a trusted platform for disseminating rigorous and clinically meaningful research that advances anesthesiology, pain medicine, and perioperative care worldwide.
The path from visibility to influence is gradually built through quality, relevance, and trust. The progress achieved thus far is encouraging, and we look forward to continuing this journey together.
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