Smoking in Irish journals: a content analysis 1960-1994

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Medical Research
• Bibliometrics

Background:

• Smoking remains a significant public health concern globally and in Ireland.
• Understanding the landscape of published medical research is crucial for informing public health strategies.
• Previous bibliometric analyses have explored research trends in various medical fields.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify and analyze published research on smoking in Irish medical journals from 1960 to 1994.
• To identify the types of smoking-related research and key authors during the study period.
• To assess the significance of smoking as a research topic within the Irish medical community.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive review of five prominent Irish medical journals.
• Data collection spanned 35 years (1960-1994).
• Papers explicitly addressing smoking were identified, categorized by research type, and authorship was analyzed.

Main Results:

• A total of 50 papers on smoking were published across the selected journals.
• The majority of papers were observational, with limited focus on smoking cessation (1 paper) or prevention (1 paper).
• General practitioners were underrepresented as authors, and research output declined in the 1980s before a slight resurgence.

Conclusions:

• Published research on smoking in Irish medical journals was notably limited during the 1960-1994 period.
• The scarcity of research, particularly on cessation and prevention, suggests a need for a substantial shift in medical research priorities.
• Achieving national smoking cessation targets may require greater engagement and research focus from the medical community.