We are thrilled to share the updated Exceptional Reviewers List 2024. This program was designed to recognize and honor scholars who have delivered consistently exceptional review reports to our journal. Committed to fostering rigorous research and promoting knowledge exchange, Children (ISSN: 2227-9067) recognizes the significant role that our reviewers play in maintaining the quality and integrity of the articles that we publish.

We would like to express our sincere appreciation for all of the reviewers who have generously volunteered their time and expertise to assist in Children’s peer review process. Their dedication and attention to detail in evaluating manuscripts, offering valuable feedback, and contributing to academic rigor are truly commendable.

The Exceptional Reviewers List was introduced in November 2024. Each month, we will be selecting a group of outstanding reviewers and introduce them here.

2024.12

Name: Dr. Ana Ilić
Affiliation: Laboratory for Nutrition Science, Department of Food Quality Control, University of Zagreb Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: nutrition of children and adolescents; nutrition assessment; nutrition education; nutrition in public health; sustainable nutrition; nutrition policy in kindergartens and schools
“I consider every review I have received as an opportunity to expand my personal skills and knowledge. In this sense, I am very grateful to be involved in the review process by providing authors with suggestions and recommendations to improve their manuscripts and enhance the quality of our scientific community.”

Name: Dr. Stuart Evans
Affiliation: La Trobe University, School of Education College, Australia
Interests: applied health and physical education pedagogies; sport and exercise science; impactful action-based pedagogies in physical education, teaching personal social responsibility, and sport as well as PE
“I am humbled and honored to be a member of such a fantastic and dedicated team that contributes to the rigorous review process by providing constructive suggestions and recommendations to further improve their manuscripts and opportunities for publication in what is an important and highly regarded journal. Thank you for the recognition of being included in the Children Exceptional Reviewers List.”

Name: Dr. Christos Zavos
Affiliation: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
Interests: Helicobacter pylori; gastroenterology; hepatology

Name: Dr. Matjaž Kopač
Affiliation: Division of Pediatrics, Department of Nephrology, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: various aspects of kidney diseases and hypertension in children

Name: Dr. Christiane Gerard
Affiliation: Ex-manager of the CHU Blood Bank, University of Liège, Belgium
Interests: blood transfusion; immuno-hematology; blood safety

Name: Dr. Adele Minutillo
Affiliation: National Center on Addictions and Doping, Istituto Superiore di Sanità (National Institute of Health), Italy
Interests: substance addictions; behavioral addictions; doping; risks of alcohol consumption during pregnancy

Name: Dr. Matteo Campanella
Affiliation: Department of Theoretical and Applied Sciences, eCampus University, Novedrate (CO), Italy
Interests: executive functions; martial arts; physical activity

Name: Dr. Carmen Costache
Affiliation: Department of Molecular Sciences, Division of Microbiology, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 6 Louis Pasteur Street, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Interests: ciliate; flagellate; colpoda; colpodella; urine

Name: Dr. Livia Ionela Bobu
Affiliation: “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 16th Universitatii Street, Iasi, Romania
Interests: dentistry; infection control; personal protective equipment; compliance; disinfection; sterilization; caries prevention; caries risk; dental sealants; fluoride; oral hygiene; diet; scaling; oral health

Name: Dr. Peter Bottenberg
Affiliation: French-language Free University of Brussels (Université Libre de Bruxelles), Belgium
Interests: clinical dentistry; composite resins; dental caries; dental education; endodontics; oral health; pediatric dentistry; preventive dentistry; restorative dentistry

2024.11

Name: Dr. Rafat Ghanamah,
Affiliation: Special Education Department, Sakhnin College for Teacher Education, Sakhnin 3081000, Israel
Interests: autism spectrum disorders, motor learning, child development, handwriting difficulties, and creativity

Name: Dr. Maria Livia Ognean
Affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, Lucian Blaga University Sibiu, Romania
Interests:  neonatology, neonatal nursing

Name: Dr. Nektaria Polychronaki 
Affiliation: First Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Aghia Sophia Children’s Hospital, Athens, Greece
Interests: childhood obesity, nutritional assessment, nutritional intervention, dietary exposures, nutritional counseling
“Reviewing ensures high-quality research in childhood nutrition and obesity. I am honored to support the advancement of pediatric science and to be included in Children’s 2024 Exceptional Reviewers List.”

Name: Dr. Mateusz Zamłyński
Affiliation: Coordinator of the Pregnancy Pathology Unit, Department of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Oncological Gynecology, Faculty of Medical Sciences in Zabrze, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland
Interests: fetal therapy, maternal–fetal medicine, spina bifida, open fetal surgery, ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology
“It is a great honor for me to be a part of the team and contribute to the development of both the journal and the work of all the authors.”

Name: Dr. Iwona Maruniak-Chudek
Affiliation: Faculty of Medical Sciences, Medical University of Silesia, 40-055 Katowice, Poland
Interests: copeptin, child, neonate

Name: Dr. Laura Sparaci
Affiliation: Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
Interests: bioengineering tools, child behavior, embodied cognition, experimental psychology analyses, human communication, human motor skills, language development, multimodal communication, neurophysiological knowledge, philosophical theories

Name: Dr. Noelia Morán Rodríguez
Affiliation: Departamento de Personalidad, Evaluación y Psicología Clínica, Complutense University of Madrid, Pozuelo de Alarcón, Spain
Interests: aggression, maltreatment and trauma, nervous and mental disease, psychology

Name: Dr. Stanley Sciortino
Affiliation: Genetic Disease Screening Program, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA 94804, USA
Interests: newborn screening

Name: Dr. Masako Ueda
Affiliation: Perelman School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Interests: cardiovascular disease risk, endocrinology, medical genetics, rare diseases

Name: Dr. Juan Carlos De La Cruz-Márquez
Affiliation: Department of Physical Education and Sports, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Interests: doping, physiology exercise, sport, physical education, anthropometry