The evolution and contributions of the Canadian Journal of Surgery: a bibliometric study

We sought to perform a bibliometric analysis of all papers published in the Canadian Journal of Surgery (CJS) since its indexing in 1968 to identify meaningful contributions and trends in publication, and thus an overview of its influence in the field.

Bibliometric data from all articles published in CJS between Jan. 1, 1968, and Dec. 31, 2024, were extracted from the Web of Science Core Collection database. Descriptive and visual bibliometric analysis were performed using Bibliometrix and VOSViewer software, respectively.

Excluding meeting abstracts, 6524 articles were published in CJS during the 57-year study period. The average age of these items was 28 years, with an average citation rate per item of 9.61 and an annual growth rate of 0.69%. Most of these items were original studies (n = 4594 [70.4%]) from Canadian centres (n = 3207 [49.2%]). Twenty-nine classic-cited papers were identified. Bibliometric analysis helps to identify trends in research and sharpen the focus of the readership of CJS by highlighting what makes specific articles more citable and important in advancing the literature. The characteristics of the most cited papers include novelty, generalizability across surgical disciplines, and genuine applicability to surgical practice.

The most productive countries, provinces, institutions, authors, and topics were identified. CJS remains an important part of Canadian surgical discourse through its continued dissemination of quality research across Canada and beyond.