ASJ Welcomes Our Newest Partner: The Argentine Society of Plastic, Aesthetic, and Reconstructive Surgery

I am delighted to welcome the Argentine Society of Plastic, Aesthetic, and Reconstructive Surgery (Sociedad Argentina de Cirugia Plástica Estética y Reparadora [SAPCER]) as the newest international affiliate of Aesthetic Surgery Journal.

SAPCER's partnership with the Journal reflects the longstanding spirit of international collaboration in the Argentine aesthetic surgery community. Three aesthetic surgeons from Argentina—Drs. Ernesto Malbec, Hector Marino, and Jose Viñas—were among the 12 founding members of the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS). In 1970, that group met in Atlanta, GA (the new home of ASJ's editorial office) in conjunction with the first meeting of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Likewise, I will have the distinct personal pleasure of attending the Society's 40th anniversary celebration next May in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Membership in SAPCER requires not only medical certification in plastic surgery, but also at least five years of clinical practice in the specialty. Upon application, candidates must present unpublished scientific research to a jury of their peers. They must also be an active member of their regional plastic surgery society. Once admitted, each member joins a distinguished group of physicians whose goal is to provide real and objective information with the highest scientific criteria and promote plastic surgery in their community through training and education. We at ASJ share this mission, of course.

As a result of our partnership, ASJ will now become the official journal of SAPCER. With Argentina's rich history of innovation in both the practice of and research in aesthetic surgery, and its numerous state-of-the-art venues for training in our discipline, we are confident that this partnership will provide continued and increased opportunities to publish work on advances in aesthetic plastic surgery from SAPCER members.