A Scientific Analysis of the 100 Citation Classics of Valvular Heart Disease

Bibliometric analyses can help researchers and research funding agencies determine which areas of medicine need appropriate research attention. Citation classics of several specialties and subspecialties have been published; however, a literature search did not turn up any in the field of valvular heart disease (VHD). The main objective of this analysis was to overcome this paucity by identifying the top 100 cited articles in VHD and to assess their characteristics. We chose Scopus as our database, from where relevant articles were extracted after a thorough search by 2 independent researchers. A list of the top 100 cited articles was prepared, after which a detailed analysis of the list was conducted. The top-cited articles were published in the 63-year era starting from 1951, with the most articles published in the 10-year interval of 2001 to 2010. The citations of the articles ranged from 438 to 2,717 with a median of 609.5. Manuscripts from our top-cited list originated from 25 different countries. Most of the articles in the top 100 list were published in high-impact journals, with about a third of the articles published in Circulation (n = 27). Our study also reveals that the current focus of researchers in the field is on transcatheter aortic valve replacement, and therefore, funding in this area is likely to result in impactful studies. In conclusion, our study highlights the characteristics of high-impact articles in the field of VHD, and this information may be useful for investigators planning to conduct studies in this area of medicine in the future.