Basic science research publications in general surgical journals: are they obsolete?

Abstract

Introduction: Basic science research (BSR) publications in general surgical journals are an important ‘translational bridge’ for practicing surgeons and surgical trainees. However, these articles are considered by some as left-over from higher impact basic science journals, and perhaps as obsolete. The purpose of this study is to characterize BSR articles published in general surgical journals and to analyze their citation frequencies. Methods: All BSR articles published in the five highest rated US general surgical journals (by Impact Factor, ISI Journal Citation reports) in the year 1996 were reviewed, characterized and their citation frequencies analyzed (total citations, citations within a year of publication, and citations in journals with impact factor greater than 5). The Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used to compare citation rates in different groups. Results: In 1996, 226 BSR articles were published in the five general surgical journals studied (10–43% of the total articles in each journal). Three fourths of BSR articles were from the USA (12% of total BSR articles by US surgeons in 1996), 12% from Europe and 8% from Japan. In 58% of the BSR articles, one of the authors was a basic scientist (PhD). Fifty-six percent of the publications were presented at a society conference. One in two US BSR publications was funded by the government (14% by private non-profit, 3% industry). On average a BSR article from these journals is cited 32 times (range 1–141, median 11). Half of the articles were cited more than ten times in six years (1–5: 24%; 6–10: 23%; >10: 52%) and 22% were cited twice or more within a year of publication. One in four publications were cited twice or more in journals with an impact factor greater than five (0: 35%; 1: 23%; 2: 17%; >2: 25%). Citation frequencies of BSR publications in general surgical journals were related to the journal impact factor (p = 0.07), to having a basic scientist (i.e. PhD) as one of the authors (p < 0.01) and to the research having been presented at a conference. Conclusions: Basic science research articles in US general surgical journals in the year studied have significant citation frequencies and were not obsolete.