The Archives of Dermatology has been in continuous publication since October 1882. It began publication by the American Medical Association in 1920 as Archives of Dermatology and Syphilology; in 1955, it continued publication as Archives of Dermatology. It is an international peer-reviewed journal published 12 times a year; the online version is published on the third Monday of the month. The journal publishes material that helps in the development and testing of the effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment in medical and surgical dermatology, pediatric and geriatric dermatology, and oncologic and aesthetic dermatologic surgery. Occasionally the journal publishes theme issues on topics such as dermatologic surgery, biotechnology, rejuvenating the aging face, and pediatric dermatology. The acceptance rate is 35%. The average time from submission to acceptance is 114 days; from acceptance to publication, 5.5 months. Its impact factor is 2.85 (the impact factor is a measure of citation rate per article, and is calculated by dividing 1 year's worth of citations to a journal's articles published in the previous 2 years by the number of major articles [eg, research papers, reviews] published by that journal in those 2 years). The editor is June K. Robinson, MD, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL (see the Archives Editorial Board).

Mission Statement: The Archives of Dermatology publishes information concerning the skin, its diseases, and their treatment. Its mission is to explicate the structure and function of the skin and its diseases and the art of using this information to deliver optimal medical and surgical care to the patient. We attempt to enhance the understanding of cutaneous pathophysiology and improve the clinician's ability to diagnose and treat skin disorders. This journal has a particular interest in publishing clinical and laboratory studies that reveal new information pertinent to the interests and needs of the medical dermatologist, dermatologic surgeon, and all those concerned with state-of-the-art care of cutaneous disease. We believe that knowledge derived from well-designed clinical trials and studies of cost-effectiveness are especially important for improving the practice of dermatology. Studies that increase the understanding of the outcome of treatment or the means by which the burden of dermatologic disease can be measured and reduced to promote the health of patients with skin disease will receive special priority. The Archives regularly publishes reports on clinical investigations, editorials, and reviews. It also features reports and discussions on clinicopathologic correlations; clinical disorders of unique didactic value; pharmacologic, medical and surgical therapeutics; and ethical, moral, socioeconomic, and political issues.

Access for Developing Countries: The online version of Archives of Dermatology is made freely available or nearly so to institutions in countries with a per person GDP of $3000 or less, through the World Health Organization’s HINARI program (see list of countries).