A medical journal is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that communicates medical information to physicians, other health professionals. Journals that cover many medical specialties are sometimes called general medical journals.[1]
The first medical journals were general medical journals, and were established in the late 18th century; specialty-specific medical journals were first introduced in the early 20th century.[2] The first medical journal to be published in the United Kingdom was Medical Essays and Observations, established in 1731 and published in Edinburgh;[3] the first to be published in the United States was The Medical Repository, established in 1797.[4]
Richard Smith, the former editor of the medical journal the BMJ, has been critical of many of the aspects of modern-day medical journal publishing.[2][5]