In January 2007, the name of the journal will be changed from NeuroRx® to Neurotherapeutics. When the original journal was titled as NeuroRx® and approved by the ASENT Board of Directors, we intended that it would serve as a shorthand version of “Neurotherapeutics.” Despite the success of the journal, questions about the title had been raised by members of the Editorial Board and the ASENT Board. Primarily, these concerns were that the name seemed more appropriate to a newsletter or to a less substantial publication, and did not adequately convey the focus of either the journal or its sponsoring society. Subsequent discussions at meetings of the Editorial Board and ASENT Board over the past year have reinforced the view that a name change to Neurotherapeutics would more clearly reflect the intended meaning of the journal title and would also, importantly, place it in a better strategic position for its future success.
On the other hand, NeuroRx® already has name recognition. Thus, the Editorial Board was again consulted. A substantial majority favored the name change, particularly if there were limited downside effects. Conversations with an outside consultant, Elsevier staff, and several journal chief editors reinforced the view that any negatives would be minimal, particularly if the name was changed to Neurotherapeutics and the NeuroRx® logo was retained in a visible fashion. Citations for prior issues of the journal, which is indexed by PubMed Central and MEDLINE, will be available under both NeuroRx® and Neurotherapeutics.
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