Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2025

Comparing Bibliometric Analysis Using PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science Databases
Published on: October 24, 2019
Medical research production in native languages: A descriptive analysis of PubMed database
Abdullah Ashraf Hamad1,2, Jaber H Jaradat2,3, Hamza K Alsalhi2,4
1Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shibin El-Kom, Egypt
Introduction:
Language barriers in medicine can hinder effective communication, comprehension, and patient care. While English has emerged as the dominant language in global medicine, the importance of native languages should not be overlooked. This article aims to examine the extent of publishing in native languages by analyzing the PubMed database literature to gain further insights into the usage of native languages in medicine and medical research.
Methods:
In December 2023, a comprehensive examination of the PubMed literature was conducted for each of the 55 registered languages. We searched for records published in each language (e.g., German[lang]) by applying language filters. Ethnologue provided data on the number of worldwide native speakers for each language, facilitating a comparative analysis.
Results:
By December 2023, PubMed contained over 36 million publications, with 86.5% of them published in English. German, French, and Russian came after English, with over 700 thousand publications each. Among the languages analyzed, fourteen had fewer than 50 publications, nineteen had fewer than 100, twenty-two had fewer than 500, and twenty-five had fewer than one thousand publications. European languages were well-represented with thousands of publications each, while widely spoken languages such as Hindi and Arabic had limited representation.
Conclusion:
The production of medical research in native languages reflects the attention given to native languages in medicine and medical education within each country. It is crucial to provide due attention to these language-related issues and explore strategies for including native languages in medicine to bridge the gaps in language and medicine.
More Related Videos
07:50A Metadata Extraction Approach for Clinical Case Reports to Enable Advanced Understanding of Biomedical Concepts
Published on: September 20, 2018
09:20Cloud-Based Phrase Mining and Analysis of User-Defined Phrase-Category Association in Biomedical Publications
Published on: February 23, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Analysis of Population Pharmacokinetic Data
Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast,...
Leaky Scanning
Combination Therapies and Personalized Medicine
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...
Drug Discovery: Overview
Methods for Studying Drug Absorption: In vitro
The diffusion cell method uses a two-compartment cell, including a donor compartment with the drug solution, which simulates the environment where the drug is applied, and a receptor compartment with a buffer solution, which simulates the environment...