It is a great honor for me to serve as Editor-in-Chief of Hypertension Research, the official journal of the Japanese Society of Hypertension.

Developments in modern life mean that the threat of cardiovascular diseases is growing rapidly worldwide, and the management of lifestyle-related disorders such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia, which contribute to cardiovascular risks, is becoming more and more important. Among these disorders, hypertension especially is a major risk factor affecting large numbers of the population. The treatment and prevention of hypertension is of interest to many different groups of researchers working on basic, clinical and epidemiological problems. Given such circumstances, the role of Hypertension Research in disseminating and propagating the significant outcomes of those studies is becoming more important.

In addition to working on increasing the quality and impact of the journal, as Editor-in-Chief I recognize that there are other issues that the journal has to consider in order to enhance its academic and scientific significance. First, relatively much attention tends to be paid to the results of large-scale clinical trials, which provide evidence to clinical practice; however, piling basic researches is important and should be continued, especially for the future development of innovative intervention. Second, the importance of negative results should be appropriately evaluated, although they could be less attractive to the readers, because without such consideration disputes regarding the preventive effects of diabetes or atrial fibrillation by inhibitors of the renin–angiotensin system, for example, will not end. Third, it should be kept in mind that the impact of a case report is sometimes overwhelming when, for example, the first patient of primary aldosteronism or cough induced by an ACE inhibitor is presented.

I am keen to start discussions with editorial board members and hear input from the authors and readers as to how we should reflect these considerations in the journal and ensure that the contents remain relevant and interesting. We would also like to invite world-wide contributors to submit and publish their papers in Hypertension Research, and we will continue to provide the highest-quality service to our authors and readers.