Publications on paediatric anaesthesia: a quantitative analysis of publication activity and international recognition

A comprehensive compilation of the current international literature on paediatric anaesthesia is lacking. The aim of this study was to identify all articles on clinical practice in paediatric anaesthesia, to name the respective journals, and to assess the publication activity and international recognition of selected countries for a 6-yr period (1993-1998). The search comprised an article-to-article evaluation ('hand search') of 12 peer-reviewed anaesthesia journals, as well as an Internet-based ('SilverPlatter') Medline-search (3,900 medical journals, US National Library of Medicine), both limited to original articles, case reports, reviews and editorials. Selected physical characteristics, for example the number of infants and children aged 0-14 yr old, the number of anaesthetists (specialists) and current impact factors (Science Citation Index) served to assess publication activity and international recognition. During the time period studied, 2259 articles (377/yr) were published on paediatric anaesthesia in 295 medical journals. The articles were primarily written in English (85.1%) and the majority originated from the USA (35.4%) and the UK (12.6%). The largest number of publications (77.7%) appeared in 29 anaesthesia journals, all referenced in Medline, with 46% being published by only five journals. Most authors published in journals of their home country/region. Authors from the UK ranked highest in publication activity, followed by those from Canada, Switzerland, Sweden and Denmark. The highest impact factor was achieved by US and UK authors. We conclude that publications on paediatric anaesthesia are clustered in a small number of journals and are written predominantly by authors from English-speaking countries, who achieved the highest international recognition.