The most influential COVID-19 articles: A systematic review.

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Epidemiology
• Public Health

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2, presented unprecedented global health challenges.
• Extensive research was rapidly published, necessitating an understanding of early-stage scientific communication.
• The significance of early pandemic publications, sharing, and citations remains a key area of study.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the characteristics and impact of highly cited COVID-19 research in the pandemic's initial phase.
• To assess the origin and focus of influential early COVID-19 publications.

Main Methods:

• A systematic literature search was conducted covering the first 12 months of the pandemic.
• Principle Component Analysis (PCA) and Multiple Factor Analysis (MFA) were employed for data analysis.

Main Results:

• The 100 most cited COVID-19 articles were identified, with a majority originating from China (54%), followed by the USA (21%) and UK (8%).
• These highly cited articles were published in high-impact journals and focused on diagnosis, transmission, and therapy.
• The average level of evidence for these top 100 articles was low.

Conclusions:

• Highly cited research in the early pandemic phase may not always correlate with a high level of evidence.
• Innovative and impactful research can achieve significant visibility and citation rates rapidly during a global health emergency.
• Understanding citation patterns of early pandemic research is crucial for navigating future health crises.