News and Press Releases
Title:
New Editor for Menopause International
Date Written:
28 Jan 2009
Professor John Studd, Chairman of the BMS from 2005 to 2007, needs little introduction as the new editor of Menopause International, even to those with just the merest hint of an interest in the menopause. Forthright, controversial, outspoken and unfailingly committed, he seems a born editor, though maybe more in the mould of Kelvin McKenzie than William Rees-Mogg. Though let it be said that even the founding editor of The Lancet, Thomas Wakley, insisted that his editorial aim in 1823 was “to entertain, instruct, and reform”.
John declares himself “thrilled” to take over from Margaret Rees as the editor of the BMS’s journal. Supported by co editors Tony Mander and newly appointed Mourad Seif, he aims to increase the number of original papers, encourage supplements (some based on themed BMS workshops) and introduce “punchy” editorials. The editor’s prerogative of an opening editorial looks set to raise a few eyebrows, but, says John, “we need to set the record straight. Some things, I believe, are going wrong in our treatment of menopausal women – in depression, in osteoporosis, and I’ll be hoping to provide a clear statement for physicians.”
While John will also continue the journal’s tradition of commissioning up-to-date reviews, he also has an eye on the citation index and the eventual award of an impact factor. “We need more original articles,” he says, “and I urge all members of the editorial board to consider Menopause International first in submitting their papers.”
It’s now 40 years since John set up Britain’s first menopause clinic (in Birmingham), and since then he has worked tirelessly in the relief of symptoms in the menopause. Indeed, it was John who championed the use of hormone implants for women with osteoporosis, severe depression or sexual problems after the menopause and for climacteric symptoms after hysterectomy. He also described the use of estrogen for the treatment of severe PMS. Now retired from the NHS, he remains clinically active at his consulting rooms in Wimpole Street.
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