Comparison Between Two Five Year Periods (1998/2002 and 2003/2007) on the Production, Impact and co-Authorship of Publications on Tobacco and Smoking by Spanish Authors Using the Science Citation Index

Abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to compare the production, impact and co-authorship of publications by Spanish authors on smoking and tobacco between two time periods (1998/2002 vs. 2003/2007) using Science Citation Index (SCI). Methods The literature search was performed in the SCI-Expanded on 20 November 2008. All types of documents by Spanish authors were selected. The search was restricted to the title, and the key words used were “smok*” and “tobac*”. The statistical analysis was descriptive (95% CI). Results A total of 588 documents were retrieved, with 399 (67.85%) original papers, 54 (9.18%) letters to the editor and 35 (5.95%) editorials. Productivity increased from the 98/02 to the 03/07 period: 234 (39.8%) documents versus 354 (60.2%), respectively. We have found significant differences between the two periods (98/02 vs. 03/07) in total mean annual documents (47 ± 8 vs. 71 ± 16 [p = 0.024]) and total mean annual original papers (34 ± 6 vs. 46 ± 9 [p = 0.041]). The mean number of citations per document was 14.1 ± 2.1 for the 98/02 period and 5.6 ± 2.5 for the 03/07 period (p = 0.003). The co-authorship annual index had increased, with a mean of 6.77 signatures/document for the 98/02 period to a mean of 6.87 for the 03/07 period. Author and institution network collaborations had increased from one period to the next. Conclusions Spanish scientific production and co-authorship of documents on smoking and tobacco have increased from one period to the next. The documents from the earlier period receive more citations.