In 2018 we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first issue of Anales de Pediatría, the official journal of the Asociación Española de Pediatría (AEP) and its Scientific Associations, recognised as the journal with the highest output and quality in Spanish paediatrics. It seems fitting that as the editors-in-chief of the past three editorial teams, we contribute to emphasise the importance of this anniversary in the lines that follow.

The Committee on the History of Paediatrics of the AEP offered to produce a special article,1 published in this same issue, highlighting the most relevant milestones in this half century of Anales. Although writing a historical article of brief length always carries the risk of leaving out some relevant events or figures, as we express in the title of this editorial, this is an occasion for celebration with an intentional balance of tradition and change. Our aim is to celebrate, and to thank everyone who has worked in collaboration with the journal.

Five editorial committees1 preceded us, each of which contributed, building on the foundation laid by previous committees, new perspectives and innovation, always with the aim of providing relevant content to Spanish paediatricians. Through them, Anales has been a privileged vantage point from which to follow the evolution of Paediatrics in Spain. The progressive emergence of new health care and research challenges has had a platform for discussion and debate in the thousands of pages of original articles, editorials, special articles, AEP articles, brief originals, scientific letters and letters to the editor, providing a reference to Spanish paediatricians. Similarly, it has offered a window on the development of research groups that have brought prestige to Spanish Paediatrics, as many of them achieved excellence. This same window has allowed us to witness the birth and development of the paediatric specialties that are now engaged in a natural and ongoing collaboration with our journal. As a loyal ally, Anales has risen to the challenges posed by the trajectory of paediatrics in Spain. Anales de Pediatría has been the mirror that reflected the progressive improvement of our scientific production. As a consequence, it has benefitted from the progress of Spanish research in paediatrics, with its quality indicators rising through the years. On the other hand, the journal of the AEP has strived throughout its trajectory to contribute to the improvement of paediatric care, informing on clinical guidelines, protocols, consensus statements and papers that could be useful in clinical practice, which have been consulted frequently with the aim of improving patient care.

The successive Editorial Committees have put their best effort in making the necessary changes over time so that Anales would reach the maximum possible quality and diffusion.2 The introduction of Anales in bibliographies, the availability of the journal both in print and online versions, the success with the impact factor3 and since 2014 the bilingual publication4 have been milestones in the journey of the journal until reaching our current position. All of the above has materialised in the progressive increment of its impact factor to 1.34 in 2017, promoting it to the third quartile in the ranking of paediatric journals, as it became a bilingual journal indexed in MEDLINE/PubMed, with a high-quality English version and with a progressive increase in traffic and in the downloads from the website of articles in both Spanish and English. To illustrate this,5 we could mention the increase in the number of visits to the website of Anales,which rose to 2.7 million in 2017, with the two countries accounting for the most visits being Spain, with more than 25% of the total, and Mexico, with 20%. For the first time, the number of visits made through ScienceDirect has exceeded one million, of which 75% were from the United States. On the other hand, Anales de Pediatría is receiving an increasing number of manuscripts in the English language. The growing presence of foreign authors among the manuscript submissions promotes the internationalisation of the journal, and we expect their contributions to increase the quality and visibility of our contents.

The achievement of each of these milestones has required the commitment of all agents involved in Anales. Upcoming editorial teams with their daily effort, reviewers in their unceasing task of selecting content based on excellence, the publisher with its work, celerity and constant modernisation and, of course, Spanish paediatrics and its specialties, represented by the AEP, will unquestionably be the drivers that project Anales into the future. We have only been able to come this far thanks to the close collaboration of the members of the Editorial Committees, with their quiet yet constant and enthusiastic activity, which has not always been free from disagreement or the need to make difficult choices.

When each of us was offered the opportunity to lead Anales, we readily accepted without quite understanding the extent to which this would impact our professional and personal lives. However, the work involved is amply rewarded by our firm belief that we are giving the best of ourselves. No effort is spared to pursue and achieve the established goals. In this regard, we must not forget the crucial role that the AEP plays in this journey through its Executive Board. Its constant support and the trust it has consistently placed on our work, without interference, have been key for the journal to operate under stringent scientific criteria. We thank these Executive Boards of the AEP for the opportunity given each of us.

The current Editorial Committee starts its second year at the helm of the journal. The established objectives continue on the path set by preceding Committees, striving to increase the quality, variety and relevance of the manuscripts submitted to the journal, making it easier for authors to communicate with us, reducing response time to authors and strengthening the presence and recognition of the journal in the scientific world. We must not forget the new challenges intrinsic to social and technological changes. Most of our readers access the contents of Anales electronically, and therefore updating the online platform is an ongoing objective. Thus, our times have also brought along new bioethic dilemmas concerning scientific publications, such as conflicts of interest, duplicate publication, predatory publishing, inaccurate or deceptive information, etc. that are very much a part of our present reality.

The previous editors, their legacy and their commitment to Anales de Pediatría will endure forever in the excellent work they have left us. On our part, we want to thank and acknowledge our respective editorial teams and all individuals who, with their effort and dedication, have brought excellence to Anales de Pediatría.