Journal of Clinical Lipidology: Scope & Access

The Journal of Clinical Lipidology (NLM abbreviation: J Clin Lipidol) is a bimonthly, peer-reviewed medical periodical established in 2007 as the official journal of the National Lipid Association (NLA). Published in partnership with Elsevier, the journal serves as a dedicated communication medium for clinicians, investigators, and healthcare professionals addressing disorders of lipid metabolism and cardiovascular prevention. It operates under a hybrid publishing model, providing both standard subscription distribution and author-funded open access options supported by an article processing charge.

What it is

The Journal of Clinical Lipidology is a specialized international scientific journal cataloged by the National Library of Medicine under NLM ID 101300157, with print ISSN 1933-2874 and electronic ISSN 1876-4789. Designed to bridge laboratory biochemistry and preventive bedside care, the journal delivers original clinical investigations, state-of-the-art reviews, and authoritative practice guidelines.

The publication focuses on the clinical evaluation, pathophysiology, and management of dyslipidemias, atherosclerosis, and metabolic risk. It serves as the primary distribution channel for official National Lipid Association clinical statements, establishing standardized guidance on lipid evaluation, biomarker thresholds, and therapeutic interventions. Every submission undergoes formal peer review supervised by an editorial board of practicing lipid specialists and cardiovascular investigators.

The journal releases six issues annually on a regular bimonthly schedule. Its readership spans cardiologists, endocrinologists, primary care physicians, clinical biochemists, lipid clinical nurse specialists, pharmacists, and dietitians involved in cardiovascular risk mitigation.

Who runs it and what it covers

The Journal of Clinical Lipidology is owned and governed through a partnership between the National Lipid Association (NLA), an American multidisciplinary medical society, and Elsevier BV. Editorial leadership is directed by Co-Editors-in-Chief P. Barton Duell, MD, FNLA, and Kevin C. Maki, PhD, CLS, FNLA, alongside an international editorial board of clinical lipidologists and cardiovascular scientists.

The journal's scope encompasses clinical and translational research across lipidology and metabolic health:

• Lipoprotein Metabolism: Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein (HDL) functionality, triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, apolipoprotein B (apoB), and lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)].
• Atherosclerosis and ASCVD Risk: Mechanisms of atherogenesis, plaque stability, arterial inflammation, vascular imaging, and risk prediction algorithms.
• Genetic and Severe Dyslipidemias: Screening and management of familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS), and rare metabolic storage disorders.
• Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology: Clinical trial outcomes and observational safety data for statins, PCSK9 inhibitors, ATP citrate lyase inhibitors, and omega-3 fatty acid preparations, including management of statin-associated muscle symptoms.
• Lifestyle and Specialized Populations: Medical nutrition therapy, dietary patterns, exercise regimens, pediatric dyslipidemias, and cardiometabolic syndrome.

The journal categorizes manuscripts into distinct publication formats with defined evidentiary standards:

• NLA Scientific Statements: Official policy positions of the National Lipid Association. Recommendations undergo systematic grading with formal evidence levels and quality ratings.
• Expert Clinical Consensus: Society-supported perspectives addressing clinical dilemmas where randomized controlled trial data may be limited, reflecting multidisciplinary expert agreement.
• Expert Clinical Reviews: Foundational overviews synthesizing current clinical evidence and pathophysiological concepts.
• Original Research: Prospective clinical trials, retrospective cohort analyses, epidemiology, and laboratory biomarker evaluations.
• Brief Reports and Letters: Focused clinical observations, novel mutations, or concise methodological communications.

NLM catalog records verify that the journal has been indexed continuously in MEDLINE and PubMed since Volume 4, Issue 1 (February 2010), under broad subject headings of Biochemistry and Metabolism (MeSH: Lipids and Lipoproteins/drug effects). Crossref registry data indicates over 5,090 registered DOIs with active ORCID author resolution and reference indexing.

How to search or use it

Accessing the Journal of Clinical Lipidology involves distinct workflows across discovery, society membership benefits, and manuscript submission:

1. Search Citations on PubMed: Query MEDLINE records using the official title abbreviation "J Clin Lipidol"[Journal] or combining title terms with clinical keywords (such as "J Clin Lipidol"[Journal] AND "lipoprotein(a)").
2. Browse Archives on ScienceDirect: Visit Elsevier's ScienceDirect portal to browse current bimonthly issues, open access papers, and articles in press dating back to Volume 1 (2007).
3. Authenticate via NLA Member Single Sign-On: Active National Lipid Association members access full-text subscriber articles by signing in at members.lipid.org/jcl, which passes single sign-on authentication to Elsevier without secondary subscription fees.
4. Retrieve Official NLA Statements: Download open-access NLA practice guidelines directly from the NLA Knowledge Center or journal collections for evidence-graded diagnostic and treatment algorithms.
5. Consult Author Guidelines: Prospective authors prepare manuscripts following Elsevier's Guide for Authors, formatting structured abstracts, declaring CRediT contributor roles, and providing clinical trial registry identifiers.
6. Submit via Editorial Manager: Upload manuscripts, blinded figures, and conflict-of-interest forms through Elsevier's Editorial Manager web portal to enter formal peer review.
7. Select Publishing Model Upon Acceptance: Following acceptance, authors elect either standard subscription publication without author fees or Open Access publication under Creative Commons licenses.

Strengths and limits

Evaluating the journal helps authors and clinical readers match their research and information needs with the venue's profile:

Strengths:

• Authoritative Clinical Guidance: Serves as the premier venue for NLA clinical consensus statements and diagnostic algorithms utilized internationally.
• Multidisciplinary Scope: Directly connects basic lipoprotein biochemistry with clinical practice across cardiology, endocrinology, primary care, and allied health professions.
• Complete Bibliographic Indexing: Comprehensive indexing across MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Science Citation Index Expanded, and Crossref ensures high discoverability and academic citation tracking.
• Publishing Flexibility: The hybrid model permits authors without open-access grant funding to publish at zero cost via subscription, while accommodating funder open-access mandates.

Limits:

• Narrow Specialty Focus: Content is strictly restricted to lipidology and cardiovascular risk. Broad internal medicine or general cardiovascular interventional studies fall outside scope.
• Subscription Paywall on Standard Articles: Full text of non-open-access articles requires an institutional subscription or NLA society membership.
• Commissioned Society Statements: Official NLA clinical guidance and consensus papers are developed by appointed society committees and are not open to unsolicited submissions.

Alternatives

Researchers and clinicians evaluating publication venues or literature sources for cardiovascular and metabolic studies can compare the Journal of Clinical Lipidology against established peer journals in lipid biochemistry, vascular biology, and general cardiology. For broad cardiovascular research beyond dedicated lipidology, authors also consult venues such as Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine.

Journal	Publisher / Sponsoring Society	Publishing Model	Core Focus	Indexing
Journal of Clinical Lipidology	Elsevier / National Lipid Association (NLA)	Hybrid (Subscription or Open Access)	Clinical lipid management, dyslipidemias, ASCVD prevention, NLA guidelines	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science
Journal of Lipid Research	Elsevier / American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB)	Gold Open Access	Lipid biochemistry, enzymatic pathways, mass spectrometry, lipidomics	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science
Atherosclerosis	Elsevier / European Atherosclerosis Society (EAS)	Hybrid (Subscription or Open Access)	Arterial wall pathophysiology, plaque biology, vascular health, EAS guidelines	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science
Current Opinion in Lipidology	Wolters Kluwer / Independent	Hybrid (Subscription or Open Access)	Commissioned reviews and annotated bibliographies in clinical and basic lipidology	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science
Circulation: Genomic and Precision Medicine	Lippincott Williams & Wilkins / American Heart Association (AHA)	Hybrid (Subscription or Open Access)	Cardiovascular genetics, pharmacogenomics, precision medicine cohorts	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science

FAQ

What is the Journal of Clinical Lipidology?

The Journal of Clinical Lipidology is a bimonthly peer-reviewed medical periodical established in 2007 as the official publication of the National Lipid Association (NLA), published by Elsevier to cover dyslipidemia, lipoprotein metabolism, and cardiovascular disease prevention.

Is the Journal of Clinical Lipidology indexed in MEDLINE and PubMed?

Yes. The journal is currently indexed in MEDLINE and PubMed under NLM ID 101300157, with continuous indexing starting from Volume 4, Issue 1 (February 2010).

Does the Journal of Clinical Lipidology charge author fees to publish?

The journal operates under a hybrid publishing model. Authors who publish via the traditional subscription track pay no publishing fee. Authors choosing Open Access pay an Article Processing Charge (APC) to make their work freely accessible under an open license, or utilize institutional agreements supported by Elsevier.

What is the difference between an NLA Scientific Statement and an Expert Clinical Consensus?

An NLA Scientific Statement represents the official policy position of the National Lipid Association and requires systematic evidence grading and quality ratings. An Expert Clinical Consensus provides society-endorsed clinical guidance based on expert consensus without requiring formal evidence grading.

How often is the Journal of Clinical Lipidology published?

The journal is published bimonthly, issuing six regular issues per annual volume alongside continuous online-first publication of articles in press.

Sources

• National Library of Medicine. "Journal of clinical lipidology." NLM Catalog (NLM ID: 101300157). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/101300157 (Accessed November 9, 2026).
• National Center for Biotechnology Information. "Journal of Clinical Lipidology Summary and Citation Count." NCBI E-Utilities API. https://eutils.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ (Accessed November 9, 2026).
• Crossref. "Journal Record for ISSN 1933-2874 (Journal of Clinical Lipidology)." Crossref Metadata API. https://api.crossref.org/journals/1933-2874 (Accessed November 9, 2026).
• National Lipid Association. "Journal of Clinical Lipidology Portal and Clinical Sources." https://members.lipid.org/jcl and https://www.lipid.org/ (Accessed November 9, 2026).
• Elsevier. "Journal of Clinical Lipidology Overview." ScienceDirect. https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/journal-of-clinical-lipidology (Accessed November 9, 2026).