Racial disparities in research productivity among integrated plastic surgery applicants.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Residency Admissions
• Scholarly Productivity

Background:

• Previous studies found no racial differences in plastic surgery trainee research productivity.
• Combining integrated and independent pathways may obscure disparities in residency selection.
• Integrated plastic surgery (IPS) is competitive and emphasizes scholarly output, making applicant differences critical.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze research productivity differences between underrepresented in medicine (URM) and overrepresented in medicine (ORM) applicants to integrated plastic surgery (IPS) programs.
• To identify disparities in scholarly output relevant to residency selection.
• To challenge assumptions about factors influencing publication advantages.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 555 matched IPS applicants from 2022-2024 cycles.
• Collection of bibliometric data from PubMed up to application deadlines.
• Classification of applicants as URM or ORM using headshot and surname analysis.
• Statistical comparison using Mann-Whitney U tests.

Main Results:

• ORM applicants had significantly higher median total publications (5 vs. 3), first-author (1 vs. 0), and second-author publications (1 vs. 0).
• No significant difference was found in plastic surgery-specific publications (median 1 in both groups).
• URM applicants published a higher percentage of articles in open access (OA) journals and incurred higher average OA costs ($750 vs. $657).

Conclusions:

• Measurable differences exist in research portfolios between URM and ORM IPS applicants, contradicting prior findings that did not separate training pathways.
• ORM applicants possess stronger research profiles and lower OA spending, highlighting the need to examine structural factors.
• Higher proportions of URM applicants from top medical schools and OA publications challenge assumptions about financial resources and research opportunities driving ORM advantages.