Abstract
BackgroundClinical research output by a country could reflect its advancement in medical education and quality of patient care. This study aims to assess the contribution of Saudi research in the field of ophthalmology.MethodsThis retrospective cross-sectional bibliometric analysis was performed in March 2020 to assess the contribution of Saudi research in the field of ophthalmology. Web of science (WoS) advanced search engine was used. All Saudi-affiliated publications from 1980 till 2019 were included. A qualitative assessment included the total number of publications, citations, citing articles, journal titles, and affiliated institutions. Quality of publications was evaluated by H-index. A comparative quantitative analysis of Arabian and some selected countries worldwide was performed. Publication productivity was adjusted to each country by population size.ResultsIn the period of 1980-2019, Saudi Arabia published 2178 articles in ophthalmology. The number of publications (Spearman's correlation Coefficient = 0.94; P < .001) and sum of citations (Spearman's correlation Coefficient = 0.99; P < .001) increased significantly over the past 40 years. The highest notable increase was detected in the period for 2010-2019. H-index was 58 with an average citation of 10.79 per article. The sum of citations was 23,507 while 18,460 articles were cited by Saudi publications. When compared to other countries, Saudi Arabia ranks the highest among Arab countries and the second most productive in Asia following Japan.ConclusionDespite the continuous improvement in the trends of ophthalmology research in Saudi Arabia, further effort is needed to strengthen the publications output and achieve a considerable international status.
Highlights
Located in Western Asia, Saudi Arabia is the second-largest Arabian country
This study revealed that 49.5% of ophthalmology research came from North America, while 31.3% came from Western Europe, 15.1% from Asia, 2.2% from the Middle East, 0.85% from South America, 0.53% from Eastern Europe, and 0.47% from
In a study conducted to analyse the output of Arab researchers in ophthalmology, Sweileh et al previously reported the number of Saudi publications in ophthalmology (828 articles); their study did not provide an in-depth analysis of Saudi Arabia’s research output [5]
Summary
Located in Western Asia, Saudi Arabia is the second-largest Arabian country. Saudi Arabia is greatly blessed with oil and natural gas, resulting in an extraordinary economic evolution that has contributed to notable improvements in the quality of education, healthcare, and many other living standards [1]. In the new era of technology and digital libraries, bibliographical tools have become more advanced, accessible, and easy to use. The utility of bibliometrics in the medical literature increased 57-fold over the past 20 years [3]. Clinical research output by a country could reflect its advancement in medical education and quality of patient care. This study aims to assess the contribution of Saudi research in the field of ophthalmology
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