Predictors of Citation Rates in High-Impact Glioblastoma Clinical Trials

Abstract

Clinical trials are at the top of research study designs and tend to attract high citation numbers. Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a multidisciplinary disease that continues to be the subject of peak research interest. In general, the literature relating to the predictors of citation rates in clinical trials remains limited. This review aims to identify the factors that influence citation numbers in high-impact GBM clinical trials. The 100 most cited GBM trials of any phase published from 1975 to 2019 were selected and reviewed. The primary analysis correlated citation numbers of articles with various trial and publication-related predictors using the Pearson correlation coefficient. The secondary analysis compared the mean citation numbers for different subgroups using the mean difference test. The median (range) citation number for the selected 100 trials was 349 (135-16,384). The primary analysis showed a significant correlation between citation numbers of articles and the study population (P = 0.024), trial phase (I-III) (P = 0.0427), and the impact factor (IF) of the journal (P < 0.0001). The secondary analysis demonstrated significantly higher mean citation numbers in all trials with the following features: study population ≥115 (P = 0.0208), phase III (P = 0.0372), treatment protocol including radiotherapy (P = 0.0189), temozolomide (TMZ) therapy (P = 0.0343), IF of the journal ≥14.9 (P = 0.02), and general medical journals (P = 0.28). We conclude that the most significant predictors of citation rates in high-impact GBM trials were the study population, trial phase, and journal’s IF. The treatment protocol was a positive predictor when it included the currently widely accepted treatment modalities (radiotherapy and TZM). Randomization, age of publication, as well as the numbers of arms, authors, centers, countries, and references were not significant predictors. Increasing awareness of the factors that could affect citations may help researchers undertaking clinical trials to enhance the academic impact of their work.

Predictors of citation rates for research publications in Neurosciences

“…11 It is generally accepted that article citation rates correlate well with the publishing journal IF. 1 , 2 , 9 In this study, Neurosciences publications had mean citations of 11.6 and total citations of 2,669.…”

“…Similar findings were reported by others. 1 , 3 , 8 , 9 The most frequent study designs were retrospective case series and cross-sectional studies, while the most frequent LOE was IV. A significant correlation between citation numbers and study design, and LOE was observed.…”

“…This is in agreement with reports that identified high LOE and study designs such as RCTs and MAs, as strong predictors of citation counts. 2 , 4 , 7 - 9 …”

“…Most such publications have focused on identifying the predictors of citation rates in the literature relating to certain fields, including neurosurgery, 2 spine, 3 orthopedics, 4 neurosciences, 5 plastic surgery, 6 urology, 7 radiology, 8 and glioblastoma multiforme trials. 9 Several variables were identified as potential citation rate predictors. Their significance however, differed between various reports.…”

“…These included sample size, study design, level of evidence (LOE), topic, journal IF, field, and publishing country, as well as the number of authors, institutions, countries, and references listed on the paper. 1 - 4 , 6 - 9 In a recent study, 5 several bibliometrics besides journal IF were identified as predictors of citation counts in neurosciences journals. These included the Eigenfactor score, cited half-life, immediacy index, and number of articles.…”