Bibliometric Analysis of the Orthopedic Literature

Abstract

Bibliometric indicators are used to assess research performance. The goal of this study was to explore publication output to construct a picture of orthopedics that may be beneficial to researchers and orthopedic specialists. All orthopedics articles published in 61 journals from 2000 to 2011 were retrieved from the Science Citation Index Expanded database. The numbers of articles, citations, authors, institutions, and journals were analyzed and subjected to quantitative and qualitative comparisons. The number of published orthopedics articles increased between 2000 and 2011. Articles published by authors from the United States always ranked first in number, although the United States' share is decreasing in the world literature. Authors from the United States published the most-cited articles and the most articles in journals with top-10 impact factors; moreover, the United States also had the greatest share of experts and highly ranked institutions. The United Kingdom, Germany, and Japan were always within the world's top 4 in terms of numbers of articles and citations. The shares of Germany, South Korea, and China among total orthopedics articles increased, especially that of China. In 2011, China ranked the fifth in the world, with its world share increasing from 0.64% in 2000 to 5.05% in 2011. However, China lags behind in average citations per article, top research institutions, and most prolific authors. According to the total citations per article, the University of Pittsburgh, Harvard University, and the Hospital for Special Surgery were the most prolific institutions.

Worldwide orthopaedic research activity 2010-2014: Publication rates in the top 15 orthopaedic journals related to population size and gross domestic product

“…In fact, publications of scientific literature can indicate a nation’s growth and progress in science and technology[5]. Moir et al[15] observed a 21% increase in orthopaedic publications from 1980 to 1994 in six selected journals.…”

Orthopaedic research activity in South Africa measured by publication rates in the 15 highest impact journals related to population size and gross domestic product

“…20 In fact, publications of scientific literature can indicate the progress of science and technology. 10 The number of publications in South Africa in the top 15 journals between 2010 and 2014 has been steady; in contrast, Egypt showed a 20% increase in publications between 2010 and 2014 despite volatile political circumstances. Obviously the below average publication record of South Africa cannot be explained by economic figures alone.…”

“…8 Bibliometric analysis is commonly used as a proxy for research output and several authors have previously performed bibliometric analysis of orthopaedic publications. [9][10][11] Only Ireland and Turkey have specifically investigated their country's individual contribution to orthopaedic literature with a focus on the institution, individual authors and distribution of publications among journals. 12,13 However, the total number of publications may not account for economic discrepancies and population size.…”

Global productivity of dermatological research: a bibliometric analysis from 1985 to 2014

“…Dear Editor , Bibliometrics is the quantitative study of literature according to bibliographies, intended to provide evolutionary models of science, technology and scholarship through an objective evaluation of the performance and impact of research activity in the studied field . In recent years, bibliometric methods have been increasingly used to evaluate scientific production in numerous medical fields, including anaesthesiology, ophthalmology, psychiatry and orthopaedics …”

“…A bibliometric study of the orthopaedic literature revealed that the top 10 countries publishing orthopaedic papers constituted 81·4% of the total orthopaedic papers from 2000 to 2011 . In our study, we observed a similar proportion, with the top 10 countries constituting 78·6% of published papers.…”