(This news story is revised from the original version posted earlier today to clarify some of the information.)

What's in a brand name? For APTA's scientific journal, more than you might think.

In a recent editorial, journal Editor-in-Chief Alan Jette, PT, PhD, FAPTA, announced that on Jan. 1, 2021, Physical Therapy, commonly referred to as PTJ, will change its brand to PTJ: Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Journal. The new brand is designed to better reflect the scope of the publication and to highlight a shift in its official brand.

A More Accurate Brand for an Influential Journal

According to Jette, the more inclusive brand reflects the breadth and depth of the research PTJ publishes: PTJ’s articles are contributed by multidisciplinary authors around the world, on topics that include but aren't limited to physical therapy. That expansion is borne out in the journal's growing reputation as an influential publication — in July 2020, PTJ was ranked eighth among all 68 rehabilitation journals in terms of the frequency its articles are cited in the scientific literature.

The growth of PTJ was also reflected in its response to the coronavirus pandemic — the creation of a "virtual issue" solely devoted to coronavirus-related content. To date, the issue houses about 20 freely available articles that include original research, clinician experiences, and perspectives.

The new brand will be accompanied by a new look that aligns with APTA's new brand, which launched in this summer.

A Continuous Approach to Publication

Among the changes on tap for January is a major shift to a "continuous publication" format that will bring relevant research to readers as quickly as possible. In the new model, author manuscripts are published as "Advance Access" articles within a couple weeks of acceptance. As soon as an article becomes final, it's posted in the table of contents for the current month. Bottom line: no more waiting for months to stay current with the latest physical therapy and rehab research. PTJ offers an email alert program that notifies subscribers of newly published articles.

According to Jette's editorial, the changes are all part of an effort to make PTJ the best it can be.

"My sincere hope," Jette writes, "is that we continue to attract the very highest quality research conducted by physical therapist and other rehabilitation researchers across the globe so that PTJ can provide the very latest and very best information to physical therapy and rehabilitation practitioners and educators and society at large."