100 most-cited articles on diabetic retinopathy

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Medical Research
• Bibliometrics

Background:

• Diabetic retinopathy (DR) research has advanced significantly.
• Understanding the impact of highly cited articles is crucial for research direction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the characteristics and impact of the top 100 most-cited articles in diabetic retinopathy research.
• To identify trends, influential journals, study types, and emerging areas in DR research.

Main Methods:

• Bibliometric analysis of the top 100 most-cited DR articles from the Scopus database (1960-2020).
• Data extraction included publication year, journal, study type, citations, and author demographics.
• Analysis of contributions from different regions and the impact on clinical guidelines.

Main Results:

• Top 100 articles published between 1961-2017, with 84% after 1990.
• Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) had higher impact factors and citations than observational studies.
• General medical/diabetes journals published more articles than ophthalmology journals; USA led contributions, with a rise in Asian research.
• Artificial intelligence (AI) for DR screening emerged as a significant recent topic.

Conclusions:

• RCTs are the most impactful study type in DR research.
• DR research is increasingly published in general medical journals, with a growing Asian contribution.
• AI for DR screening is a rapidly developing field with substantial future potential.