Journal of Robotic Surgery

The Journal of Robotic Surgery is an international peer-reviewed surgical journal dedicated to evaluating robotic-assisted surgical techniques, computer-assisted interventions, surgical simulation, and medical imaging. Established in 2007 and published by Springer Nature, it serves as the official publication of the Society of Robotic Surgery. The journal provides an academic forum for clinical investigators, surgical innovators, and healthcare institutions seeking evidence-based evaluations of robotic platforms across multiple operative specialties.

For researchers evaluating dissemination venues, this guide compiles the verified bibliographic identifiers, editorial scope, manuscript submission workflow, article processing charges, and comparative alternatives for the publication.

What It Is and Core Identifiers

The Journal of Robotic Surgery is categorized by the National Library of Medicine under General Surgery and Technology. It focuses on the translational and clinical adoption of surgical robotics across subspecialties. While print distribution concluded with Volume 8 in 2014, the journal continues continuous online publication under Springer-Verlag.

Prospective authors and indexing librarians rely on the following verified catalog details:

• Full Journal Title: Journal of Robotic Surgery
• NLM Title Abbreviation: J Robot Surg
• NLM ID: 101300401
• Print ISSN: 1863-2483
• Electronic (Online) ISSN: 1863-2491
• Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN): 2007243629
• Publisher: Springer-Verlag (Springer Nature), London / Heidelberg
• Digital Identifiers: Registered with Crossref DOIs under prefix 10.1007/s11701
• Current Indexing Status: Fully indexed in MEDLINE (commencing with Volume 9, Issue 1, March 2015), Index Medicus, PubMed, Scopus, and Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE)

The journal uses English as its publication language and assigns unique persistent identifiers to all published articles, technical reports, and reviews.

Who Runs It and What It Covers

The journal is directed by Founding Editor Dr. Vipul Patel alongside an international editorial board comprising robotic surgeons from academic medical centers. It maintains official affiliation with the Society of Robotic Surgery (SRS), representing surgeons across multidisciplinary operative domains.

The scope encompasses technological developments, clinical trials, retrospective cohort analyses, and technical procedural modifications in the following surgical subdisciplines:

• Urology: Robot-assisted radical prostatectomy, partial nephrectomy, cystectomy, and reconstructive urology. Surgical outcomes in this area directly interface with clinical practice documented in urology research.
• General Surgery: Robotic colorectal resections, bariatric surgery, foregut procedures, complex abdominal wall reconstructions, and hepato-pancreato-biliary interventions.
• Gynecology and Obstetrics: Robotic hysterectomy, myomectomy, sacrocolpopexy, and gynecologic oncology staging procedures.
• Orthopedics: Robotic-assisted total and unicompartmental knee arthroplasty, total hip arthroplasty, and intraoperative trajectory navigation in orthopedic surgery.
• Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery: Robotic coronary revascularization, mitral valve repair, thymectomy, and anatomical lung segmentectomies.
• Head and Neck: Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for base-of-tongue and tonsillar lesions.
• Simulation and Training: Virtual reality simulation curricula, objective assessment of technical skills, learning curves, and robotic team credentialing frameworks.

Articles published in the journal undergo rigorous single-blind peer review to verify methodological validity, statistical reporting, and ethical compliance.

How to Search, Access, and Submit

Researchers interacting with the Journal of Robotic Surgery typically engage through article discovery portals or the editorial submission management system. Navigating these platforms follows a standardized workflow:

1. Locate Articles via PubMed or SpringerLink: Enter the NLM abbreviation "J Robot Surg"[journal] into PubMed or browse the official Springer journal portal by volume and issue.
2. Review Aims and Scope: Confirm that the manuscript aligns with clinical robotics, surgical innovation, or simulation rather than general non-robotic surgical instrumentation.
3. Select the Manuscript Article Type: Choose between Original Article, Review Article, Technical Note, or Case Report, ensuring word limits, structured abstract requirements, and figure allowances comply with publisher limits.
4. Format Citations and References: Format all citations using Springer’s numbered Vancouver style. In-text references must appear as Arabic numerals in square brackets (e.g., [1] or [2, 3]). In the reference list, format author names with surname followed by initials, use LTWA abbreviated journal titles (such as J Robot Surg), and append persistent DOIs to all journal citations.
5. Prepare Ethical Declarations: Include formal declarations covering institutional review board (IRB) approval, informed patient consent for surgical imagery, conflict of interest statements, and data availability statements.
6. Access Editorial Manager: Navigate to the journal’s Editorial Manager portal via the Springer homepage and sign in with an ORCID identifier or publisher account.
7. Upload Source Files: Submit editable manuscript files (DOCX or LaTeX), separate high-resolution figures (minimum 300 DPI for photographs, 600 DPI for line art), and any supplementary operative video files.
8. Select Publishing Model (Hybrid Option): Upon peer-review acceptance, decide whether to publish under the traditional subscription model at no cost or choose open access publishing through Springer Open Choice.

Strengths and Limits

Strengths

• Dedicated Robotic Focus: Unlike broader surgical journals where robotic papers form a small minority, every article directly addresses robotic instrumentation, ergonomics, workflows, or patient outcomes.
• Established Indexing: Continuous MEDLINE and SCIE indexing ensures rapid indexing in PubMed and worldwide bibliometric discovery.
• Zero Submission Fees: The availability of the traditional subscription route guarantees that researchers without dedicated grant funding or institutional transformative agreements can publish peer-reviewed studies without financial barrier.
• Support for Multimedia: The platform supports embedded surgical video files and technical demonstrations critical for surgical technique dissemination.

Limits

• Hybrid APC Cost: For authors whose funders mandate immediate gold open access without a transformative agreement, the Open Choice APC of $4,090 (EUR 3,090 / GBP 2,690) represents a substantial budgetary allocation, though often offset by open access publishing funds.
• Single-Blind Review: The review process is single-blind, meaning reviewer identities remain concealed while author identities and institutional affiliations are visible to referees.
• Clinical Scope Constraint: Pure mechanical engineering or software algorithm papers without clear surgical or clinical application are often redirected to engineering-focused biomedical platforms.

Alternatives in Robotic Surgery

Researchers weighing manuscript submissions in surgical robotics and image-guided surgery can compare relevant peer-reviewed journals in the table below:

Journal Title	Publisher	NLM / ISO Abbr	Publishing Model	Primary Scope Focus	Core Indexing
Journal of Robotic Surgery	Springer Nature	J Robot Surg	Hybrid (Free or $4,090 APC)	Clinical robotic surgery, surgical simulation, multi-specialty clinical outcomes	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, SCIE
International Journal of Medical Robotics and Computer Assisted Surgery	John Wiley and Sons	Int J Med Robot	Hybrid	Surgical robotics, computer-aided intervention, haptics, and telesurgery systems	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, SCIE
Surgical Endoscopy	Springer Nature (SAGES)	Surg Endosc	Hybrid	Minimally invasive, endoscopic, laparoscopic, and robotic surgical interventions	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, SCIE
International Journal of Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery	Springer Nature (CARS)	Int J Comput Assist Radiol Surg	Hybrid	Digital imaging, surgical navigation, image-guided robotics, and medical visualization	MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, SCIE

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Journal of Robotic Surgery indexed in PubMed and MEDLINE?

Yes. The National Library of Medicine catalog confirms that the Journal of Robotic Surgery has been indexed in MEDLINE and PubMed since Volume 9, Issue 1 (March 2015), under NLM ID 101300401 and ISO title abbreviation J Robot Surg.

What is the reference style required by the Journal of Robotic Surgery?

The journal requires Springer’s numbered Vancouver style. In-text citations must use Arabic numerals inside square brackets (e.g., [1] or [2, 3]). In the reference list, journal titles must follow standard LTWA abbreviations, and DOIs should be appended to all citations.

Does the Journal of Robotic Surgery charge an author publication fee?

Publication is free for authors choosing the standard subscription route. For authors electing immediate open access through Springer Open Choice, an article processing charge of USD 4,090 (EUR 3,090 / GBP 2,690) applies, which may be covered by institutional transformative agreements.

What surgical subspecialties are published in the journal?

The journal covers multi-specialty applications of robotic surgery, including urology, general surgery, gynecology, cardiothoracic surgery, orthopedics, otolaryngology (head and neck), and surgical simulation curricula.

Sources

• National Library of Medicine. (2026). NLM Catalog: Journal of Robotic Surgery (NLM ID 101300401). National Center for Biotechnology Information. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog/101300401 (Verified 2026-11-08).
• Crossref. (2026). Crossref Metadata API: Journal of Robotic Surgery (ISSN 1863-2491). https://api.crossref.org/journals/1863-2491 (Verified 2026-11-08).
• OpenAlex. (2026). OpenAlex Source Profile: Journal of Robotic Surgery (Source ID S147458129). https://api.openalex.org/sources?filter=issn:1863-2491 (Verified 2026-11-08).
• Springer Nature. (2026). Journal of Robotic Surgery: Aims, Scope, and Author Guidelines. https://link.springer.com/journal/11701 (Verified 2026-11-08).
• Society of Robotic Surgery. (2026). Official Journal Affiliation and Mission. Society of Robotic Surgery. https://srobotics.org/ (Verified 2026-11-08).