📚 Clinical Immunology [Neurosurgery Wiki]

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====== 📚 Clinical Immunology ======

**Full Title:** *Clinical Immunology*  
**Publisher:** Elsevier  
**ISSN:** 1521-6616  
**Impact Factor (2024 est.):** ~4.0  
**Scope:** Immunopathology, autoimmunity, immune tolerance, infectious immunology, immune-based therapies

===== 🎯 Strengths =====

* **Broad thematic reach** across translational and clinical immunology: from autoimmunity to immune-oncology
* Publishes both **basic science** and **clinical application** studies — often bridging the gap effectively
* Reputable **editorial board** and robust **peer review process**
* Frequently cited in **autoimmune disease** and **infection-related immunology** literature
* Accepts **mechanistic, biomarker, and immunotherapeutic** studies

===== ⚠️ Weaknesses =====

* Articles often lean toward **descriptive data** with limited mechanistic depth — especially in immunohistochemistry-heavy or serologic correlation papers
* Tendency to publish **associative findings** without definitive causal frameworks — leading to speculative conclusions
* Impact Factor remains **modest** compared to journals like *The Journal of Clinical Investigation* or *Nature Immunology*
* **Inconsistent editorial quality** in some observational studies and case series

===== 🧠 For Neuroscientists and Clinicians =====

While *Clinical Immunology* is not neurology-focused, it’s a valuable resource when exploring:

  * **Neuroimmunology crossovers** (e.g., multiple sclerosis, NMO, paraneoplastic syndromes)
  * **Infectious immunology** and its role in **autoimmune CNS conditions**
  * **Cytokine signaling**, **immune checkpoint modulation**, and **immune cell phenotyping** with potential relevance to CNS tumors or neuroinflammation

===== 🧩 Verdict =====

A solid mid-tier journal in the immunology landscape. It is particularly strong in exploring the **interface between chronic infection and autoimmunity**, but occasionally lacks the **mechanistic rigor or clinical breakthrough** expected in higher-impact journals. Best used for **hypothesis generation** and **translational insight**, not definitive clinical guidance.

> *Clinical Immunology is where immune theories go to gain credibility — not necessarily to be proven.*