Correlation Between Altmetric Score and Traditional Bibliometrics in Total Joint Arthroplasty Research

Abstract

Background Citation analysis is commonly used to evaluate the impact of academic publications within an area of study. The purpose of this study is to review the publications with the highest Altmetric scores related to total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and assess the correlation with traditional bibliometrics. Methods Altmetric scores were obtained for the top articles relating to THA and TKA and organized from highest to lowest scores. The Clarivate Analytics Web of Knowledge database was used to search the top articles by Altmetric score. Articles meeting inclusion criteria were reviewed for various metrics, including number of citations, journal impact factor at the time of publication, and study type and design. Results The top THA and TKA publications were cited 3042 times and 7523 times, respectively. The former were published in journals with an average impact factor of 17.861, and the latter in journals with an average impact factor of 15.564. For THA, Altmetric score demonstrated a significant, weakly positive correlation with the number of citations ( P = .008). For TKA, Altmetric score was found to have a significant, weakly positive correlation with impact factor of journal ( P = .04); however, it was nonsignificant for citation count ( P = .11). When one outlier is removed, the correlation with citation count is statistically significant ( P = .009). Conclusion While alternative metrics cannot replace traditional bibliometrics, they may serve a complimentary role in describing the influence of research. Thus, the Altmetric score represents an additional tool to identify the most influential articles to guide learning and evidence-based practice.

Scientometric Analysis of the Top 50 Most-Cited Joint Arthroplasty Papers: Traditional vs Altmetric Measures

“…This may stem from the reader’s tendency to share articles from the journals with a higher impact factor. Although a similar trend was found in total knee literature, a correlation between AAS and impact factor was not found in sports science and total hip arthroplasty literature [ 71 , 72 , 74 ]. High-impact journals may be more active in engaging with social media, or the quality of studies may play a role in this association.…”

“…At the same time, the mean AAS was 63.4 ± 164.8, and the median AAS was 10.5. Previous studies in other orthopedic specialties have found a median AAS of 4 to 235, depending on the topic and age of the publication [ 66 , [68] , [69] , [70] , [71] ]. In line with other authors, we found a significant but weak correlation between the citation number and AAS across the included papers [ [3] , [67] , [68] , [69] , [72] , [73] ].…”

Comparing Orthopaedic Randomized Control Trials Published in High-Impact Medical and Orthopaedic Journals

“…Positive associations between AAS and citation rate have previously been described in orthopaedic literature. 4,[7][8][9][10] AAS has thus gained utility and popularity for evaluating the level of public interest in the current digital era. Contrary to these findings, Collins et al 32 found no correlation between AAS and citations across 15 orthopaedic journals.…”

“…5,6 However, recent advances in digital media have prompted the development of alternative metrics, such as the Altmetric Attention Score (AAS), which measures the real-time impact of studies on digital news and social media platforms. Although AAS and citation rates have consistently been shown to correlate with each other, 4,[7][8][9][10] there is conflicting evidence to suggest an association between these metrics and external factors such as study quality and results. 7,11,12 Furthermore, it is unclear whether there are characteristics distinguishing high-quality orthopaedic studies published in orthopaedic-specific journals and medical journals, which historically have larger audiences.…”

Impact of Large Database Studies on Orthopedic Surgery Literature: Are We Advancing the Field?

“…Altmetrics have also been used as an adjunct for evaluating the impact of published studies, pointing to both a correlation with citation frequency and an association with social media exposure [19,27,30]. The Altmetric Attention Score (AAS) is one of the most widely used tools used to quantify a publication's online footprint.…”