Bibliometric Analysis of Lung Transplantation Research Articles

Abstract

Background: In the last 30 years lung transplantation has proven to be a lifesaving therapeutic option for patients with end-stage lung disease. The objective of this study was to perform a bibliometric analysis of lung transplantation research articles. Method: A bibliometric evaluation of the evolution of scientific production in the field of lung transplantations between 1989 and 2009 was conducted using the ISI Web of Science. The search terms selected were “lung transplant*” OR “pulmonary transplant*”. Specific features including year of publication, language, geographical distribution, first author, main journal publishing these articles, journals publishing highly cited articles, and institutional affiliation were analyzed. The citation characteristics of articles were additionally analyzed. Results: A total of 6409 (58.0 %) research articles were found. The time trend of the number of articles showed an increase of more than 6.81 between 1989 and 2009. North America contributed 50.4 % and Europe contributed 46.0 % of published articles. The greatest number of contributions came from the USA (43.6 %), followed by England (9.1 %) and Germany (8.6 %). There were 104 522 citations of these articles by 25 July 2010. The average citation per article was 16.31. The New England Journal of Medicine ranked first with regard to the number of articles and the number of highly cited articles. G. A. Patterson, Washington University, and the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) were the top author, institution and funding agency, respectively. Conclusion: The number of publications and the scientific interest in lung transplantation has increased rapidly in recent years. Citations of articles published in the field of lung transplantation are increasing and the numbers of uncited articles are fewer compared to the average citations of articles and uncited articles in the field of medicine.

Key words

lung benign or congenital lesions - transplantation heart‐lung - transplantation lung - lung transplantation - pulmonary transplant - bibliometrics - citation

References

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Editor's Commentary

This highly unusual, original, and diligent study is an editor's delight. Bibliometric analyses are increasingly used for evaluation processes, career decisions and assignment of funding, gaining more and more influence behind the scenes. It is therefore interesting for every scientist to study the respective tools and what they can be used for, at the same time learning about their limitations. Dr Habibi and co-workers have to be commended upon a tremendous piece of work. They were able to document an astonishing, constantly increasing number of publications concerning lung transplantation.

The reader familiar with this field will probably be confirmed in his previous assumptions on who published where and was ultimately read. For publishers it must be interesting to see how the creation of a highly specialized journal can attract significant publications in a relatively short time span, obviously meeting a sincere demand. Lung transplantation has moved from an almost experimental to a universally accepted treatment, inspiring numerous groups to perform fascinating research. Nevertheless, the documented flood of publications is quite intimidating. Presumably this is not the message the authors intended to convey, but it is still worth pondering about.

Markus K. Heinemann, MD, PhD, Editor-in-Chief, The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon
Klinik für Herz-, Thorax- und Gefäßchirurgie
Universitätsmedizin Mainz
Langenbeckstraße 1
55131 Mainz
Germany
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