Bibliometric analysis of articles published in the Brazilian Journal of Plastic Surgery between 2005 and 2012. Part I: quantitative analysis of articles, authors, and geographical distribution

ABSTRACT

Introduction:

Bibliometric indicators have been implemented in several national and international studies. However, there is no specific information about the scientific articles discussing plastic surgery in Brazil. This study therefore aimed to carry out a bibliometric analysis of articles published in the Brazilian Journal of Plastic Surgery (RBCP), the official journal of the Brazilian Society of Plastic Surgery.

Methods:

A bibliometric analysis using quantitative indicators of all articles published in the RBCP was performed to characterize the scientific results over a seven-year period (2005-2012) marked by major changes to the journal. All articles selected were analyzed individually, in order to collect data on article and author numbers, and their geographical distribution. Two periods (2005-2008 vs. 2009-2012) were considered for comparative analysis.

Results:

A total of 603 articles met the inclusion criteria. The average number of articles published per year and the number of authors per article were 75.38 ± 32.12 articles/year and 3.98 ± 2.01 authors/article, respectively. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) in articles/year in 20092012 compared to the earlier time period. No significant variations were detected (p > 0.05) in the number of authors/article (2005-2008 = 2009-2012). Most articles came from Brazilian institutions (98.67%; p < 0.05), and the Southeast region (63.70%; p < 0.05) accounted for most of these publications.

Conclusion:

During the observation period, the number of scientific articles published in the RBCP increased, there was no change in the number of authors per paper, and there was a predominance of articles coming from the Southeast Brazil.

Keywords:
Bibliometrics; Plastic surgery; Scientific publications; Journals; Journal of Plastic Surgery