Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35425878›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in research metrics and analytics2022

The Upsurge of Impact Factors in Pediatric Journals Post COVID-19 Outbreak: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Pritish Mondal, Lauren Mazur, Lilly Su, Suparna Gope, Esther Dell

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in research metrics and analytics, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Looking Back at 2022 and ahead to 2023 for theKorean journal of radiology · 2023
    Article
  2. Korean journal of radiology · 2022
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Pritish MondalDepartment of Pediatrics, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, United States.
Lauren MazurDepartment of Pediatrics, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, United States.
Lilly SuDepartment of Pediatrics, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, United States.
Suparna GopeDepartment of Administration and Leadership, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, PA, United States.
Esther DellHarrell Health Sciences Library, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Impact factor (IF) is a quantitative tool designed to evaluate scientific journals' excellence. There was an unprecedented upsurge in biomedical journals' IF in 2020, perhaps contributed by the increased number of publications since the COVID-19 outbreak. We conducted a cross-sectional study (2018-2020) to analyze recent trends in standard bibliometrics (IF, Eigenfactor, SNIP) of pediatric journals. We also estimated reference and publication counts of biomedical journals since publication volume determines the number of citations offered and IF. Methods: Various bibliometrics of pediatric journals and reference/publication volumes of biomedical journals were compared between 2020 vs. 2019 and 2019 vs. 2018. We also compared open access (OA) and subscription journals' trends. Finally, we estimated IF changes in the journals of a different specialty, pulmonology. Results: The study included 164 pediatric and 4,918 biomedical journals (OA = 1,473, subscription = 3,445). Pediatric journals' IFs had increased significantly in 2020 [median (IQR) = 2.35 (1.34)] vs. 2019 [1.82 (1.22)] (Wilcoxon: Conclusions: We report an upsurge in pediatric journals' IF, perhaps contributed by a sudden increase in publication numbers in 2020. Therefore, considering this limitation, IF should be cautiously used as the benchmark of excellence. Unlike IF, Eigenfactor remained stable between 2018 and 2020. Similar changes in IF were also observed among the journals of another specialty, pulmonology.

Indexed as

bibliometricsCOVID-19Eigenfactorimpact factoropen access journalspublication biasSNIP

Identifiers

PMID35425878
PMCPMC9002324

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.