The disruptions that the COVID-19 pandemic has wrought on all aspects of our society creates anxiety for us all. Many of you are serving on the front line of COVID-19 response, caring for patients and working to contain the epidemic. We are deeply grateful for all you do and stand with all of our readers, authors, and reviewers, many of whom are working under immense pressure and may need to prioritize activities in support of family, patients, and community.

While we have transitioned to working remotely, we want to assure you that the AJKD Editorial Office is open and editorial staff are working to keep manuscripts moving through review as normally as possible. We anticipate that the review process at AJKD may take longer than usual because of our reviewers’ and editors’ needs to address critical issues related to the pandemic. While we cannot predict how this public health crisis may affect our turnaround times, we greatly appreciate your patience when awaiting editorial decisions.

We will endeavor to keep you apprised of the status of your submissions without inundating your likely swollen email inboxes. If you have questions about your submission, please do not hesitate to reach out to our editorial office at ajkd@pennmedicine.upenn.edu. Should authors or reviewers need an extension, please let us know and we will make any necessary accommodation.

AJKD will be expediting review of all COVID-19 submissions (from February 10, 2021, the decision to expedite will be made on a case-by-case basis); articles published on this topic will be freely available upon online publication. Submissions must be uploaded to our online manuscript management system: https://www.editorialmanager.com/ajkd.

We thank you for bringing your work to AJKD and hope that you and your families stay safe and healthy in these uncertain times.

With best regards,
Harold Feldman, on behalf of AJKD Editors and Staff

See also: NephMadness 2020 Update and AJKD Editorial Internship Application Update