Culturomic Analysis of Trends in Otolaryngology

Abstract

Objective: 1) Quantitatively describe historical trends in diagnoses and treatments in otolaryngology as measured by frequency of word use. 2) Quantitatively describe historical trends in terminology used in otolaryngology. Method: A variety of search terms of n-grams (words or short phrases) specific to the practice of otolaryngology was used to search the English Language Corpus of Google Books. Trends in n-gram frequency across years were correlated to known historical milestones in otolaryngology. Results: A variety of search terms was used, the results of which quantitatively document historical trends in otolaryngology. For example the frequency of “stapes” in the corpus increased sharply around 1957, correlated with increases in the frequency of the terms “otosclerosis” and “stapedectomy,” whereas “incus” showed no similar increase in frequency. These frequencies correlate well with the popularization of stapedectomy for otosclerosis. Many additional analyses are presented with similarly strong correlations. In addition, trends of word use in otolaryngology were quantified by the same technique. Conclusion: Culturomic searches accurately demonstrate historical trends in otolaryngology, permitting both quantitative analysis of known trends and revelation of previously unknown trends in diagnosis, treatment, and terminology use in otolaryngology.