CARDIOVASCULAR JOURNAL OF AFRICA • Vol 22, No 5, September/October 2011
AFRICA
233
From the Editor’s Desk
For the first time, the
Cardiovascular Journal of Africa
has been
evaluated for impact factor in the new Journal Citation Report
of the ISI.
What is the impact factor and what are its implications?
For any journal to have an impact factor, it must be tracked by
Thompson Reuters (ISI) for three years. The Journal Citation
Index provides a measure of the frequency of which an average
article is cited each year in the two years after publication.
The journal’s impact factor does not tell us anything about
how widely the journal is read or anything about the quality of
any specific research article in the published journal. In fact, the
impact factor was intended for librarians as a means of evaluat-
ing whether to purchase the title. The impact factor is usually
placed prominently on the journal’s website or in the printed
journal.
The impact factor for the
Cardiovascular Journal of Africa
for 2010 is 0.708 and the total number of citations was 105. The
number of articles in 2008 was 47. The impact factors of other
South African and African medical journals are:
African Journal of AIDS Research
0.425
South African Medical Journal
1.676
South African Journal of Surgery
0.233
South African Journal of Science
0.596
To increase the value of the impact factor, it is important that
every effort be made to cite your articles as widely as possible.
AJ Brink
Editor-in-Chief
Letter to the Editor
Raynaud’s phenomenon
Raynaud’s phenomenon is a disorder, causing discolouration of
the fingers. It is thought to be related to vasospasm. It can also
affect the toes and other areas. The nails become brittle with
longitudinal ridges. The condition was named after Maurice
Raynaud (1834–1881).
The condition is the result of a vasospasm that decreases
the blood supply to various organs. The triggers are cold and
emotional stress. Raynaud’s disease is idiopathic and Raynaud’s
syndrome is secondary to an initiating factor. One can measure
the temperature of the hands to differentiate between the two
forms. The primary form can progress to the secondary form.
Complication in the secondary form is progression of the disor-
der to fingertip gangrene.
Raynaud’s phenomenon is an exaggerated response to
emotional stress or cold. The sympathetic system causes severe
vasoconstriction of the peripheral vessels and an axillary sympa-
thectomy may well alleviate the disorder. The vasoconstriction
leads to tissue hypoxia.
Chronic recurrent cases of Raynaud’s phenomenon can result
in atrophy of the skin, subcutaneous tissue and muscle. Cases
have been described where ischaemic gangrene and ulceration
result. The disorder must be differentiated from acrocyanosis and
pernio (chilblains).
There are specific medicines that are peripheral vasodilators,
and the wearing of gloves may alleviate the disorder. The colour
changes are usually from white to blue and then red. White
occurs with the vasospasm, blue is due to cyanosis and red is
from the resultant vasospasm related to prolonged vasoconstric-
tion.
HD Solomons
Highlands North, South Africa
