Report of the Chief Editor, The Asian Urology

Dr Rajeev Kumar
Associate Professor of Urology
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi

Chief Editor-The Asian Urology

It is my honor and privilege to have been selected to serve as the Chief Editor of The Asian Urology, the official publication of the Urological Association of Asia.

Since its inaugural issue, the newsletter had been published once every year till the year 2006. The newsletter was envisaged as a medium to disseminate the philosophy and work of the UAA and serve as a platform for projection of its achievements and those of its constituent members. It carried reports of the activities of the UAA and its affiliated societies and scientific articles written by urologists practicing in Asia.

After a regular yearly edition in the initial years, the newsletter was not published in 2007 and 2008. At its 17th meeting in October 2008 at New Delhi during the 9th Asian Congress of Urology, the UAA Council decided to revive the newsletter.

While we had initially aimed to come out with a print version, it was decided by the Executive Council that we should begin with an online version since most members have access to the internet. The current online version is the first step at this revival. While planning for the newsletter, we had solicited and received a number of scholarly articles written specifically for the Newsletter by urologists practicing in Asia. However, the current online version has been restricted to reports of the UAA and these scientific articles will be published at a later date.

In addition to this online edition, a special print edition of The Asian Urology is being planned to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the UAA. This will coincide with the 10th ACU meeting in Taipei and the monograph will be ready for distribution at the 10th ACU. This monograph will include a history of each member organization, details on its office bearers, membership, events and fellowships in addition to historical articles on the UAA and its various affiliated bodies.

The UAA website (www.uaanet.org) was launched in March 2007. In October 2008, it was decided by the UAA council to update the website on a regular basis. Data on the UAA membership, affiliated bodies and meetings was collected and all existing data on the website was reviewed by the original contributors. The revised data along with a completely revised website has been uploaded and is fully functional. The current website is revised on a regular basis and whenever new information is provided by the council/ members.