About the Journal
Aims and Scope
The Journal of Clinical and Forensic Traumatology (JCFT) is an international, peer-reviewed, open-access journal dedicated to advancing the science and practice of trauma across clinical, surgical, psychological, forensic, and translational dimensions.
Its mission is to foster multidisciplinary collaboration that improves the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and understanding of traumatic injuries and their outcomes. The journal provides a scientific forum where clinicians, surgeons, pathologists, psychologists, and researchers can share innovative findings that bridge biological mechanisms, patient care, and post-injury evaluation.
JCFTraum emphasizes the integration of clinical insight, technological innovation, and analytical accuracy to strengthen the continuum between emergency medicine, surgical management, and trauma reconstruction — both in the living patient and in post-mortem investigation.
Clinical Traumatology and Emergency Medicine
This section focuses on the clinical management of trauma from first contact to rehabilitation. It welcomes studies on emergency triage, advanced life support, hemodynamic stabilization, and intensive care strategies, as well as organ-specific trauma involving thoracic, abdominal, cranial, and musculoskeletal systems. Research on diagnostic biomarkers, prognostic indicators, and point-of-care imaging is encouraged. The aim is to translate bedside experience into reproducible evidence that improves patient outcomes and decision-making in acute care.
Surgical Traumatology and Critical Interventions
This section addresses operative and peri-operative management of traumatic injuries, encompassing damage control surgery, vascular and thoracic repair, neurotrauma, orthopedic fixation, reconstructive surgery, and surgical innovation.
Manuscripts exploring peri-operative complications, hemostatic balance, infection control, and simulation-based training are welcomed. The section promotes technical precision and multidisciplinary teamwork in the management of critically injured patients.
Psychological and Psychiatric Traumatology
Beyond the physical consequences, trauma profoundly affects mental health and social functioning.
This section invites contributions on acute stress responses, post-traumatic stress disorder, mood and anxiety disturbances, dissociation, and long-term adaptation among survivors.
It also welcomes studies on resilience, coping, and psychotherapeutic interventions, as well as neurobiological correlates of trauma exposure. By linking psychological science and clinical medicine, JCFTraum promotes a holistic understanding of trauma recovery.
Forensic Traumatology and Injury Analysis
This section explores the scientific investigation of injury mechanisms, tissue damage, and trauma reconstructionthrough anatomical, histopathological, and imaging approaches.
It welcomes studies on wound morphology, fracture biomechanics, thermal and electrical trauma, post-mortem changes, and the use of modern imaging such as CT, MRI, and infrared thermography for injury documentation.
Forensic traumatology, in this context, represents the objective and analytical study of trauma — aimed at elucidating causation, injury dynamics, and sequence of events — rather than legal adjudication.
Contributions may include quantitative analyses of soft- and hard-tissue lesions, correlations between clinical findings and structural injury, and validation of diagnostic methods for trauma interpretation.
The section highlights how forensic perspectives can enhance the precision of clinical documentation, trauma research, and public health prevention.
Translational and Experimental Trauma Research
This section bridges laboratory discovery with clinical application. It focuses on the molecular and physiological responses to trauma, including inflammation, oxidative stress, tissue regeneration, coagulopathy, and shock.
Experimental models, biomarker discovery, omics analyses, and artificial intelligence applications in trauma detection and classification are highly encouraged.
The goal is to transform basic research into practical solutions that improve diagnostics, therapy, and understanding of trauma pathophysiology.
Special Topics and Cross-Disciplinary Studies
JCFTraum also welcomes manuscripts that address trauma from system, educational, or technological perspectives — including trauma networks, telemedicine, prevention strategies, and multidisciplinary simulation training.
Public health aspects, long-term rehabilitation, and global health initiatives related to trauma care are within the journal’s scope.
Editorial and Ethical Standards
All manuscripts undergo blind peer review to ensure impartiality and scientific rigor.
The journal adheres to COPE (https://publicationethics.org/) and ICMJE ethical standards and operates under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), ensuring open access and transparency in scientific communication.
Ethical approval, informed consent, and adherence to research integrity principles are mandatory for all submissions.
Vision
Journal of Clinical and Forensic Traumatology (JCFT) aspires to become an international reference point for trauma research, education, and innovation — connecting clinicians, scientists, and technologists who share the goal of understanding and mitigating the multifaceted impact of traumatic injury.
By combining clinical evidence, experimental data, and analytical rigor, the journal contributes to the advancement of trauma medicine as both a life-saving discipline and a cornerstone of scientific progress.
The journal adheres to COPE and ICMJE ethical guidelines.
