ArticleFrontiers in research metrics and analytics2026
Early citation dynamics and predictors of time to first citation in Ecuadorian medical publications: a survival analysis of research visibility.
Article in Frontiers in research metrics and analytics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Citation-based indicators are widely used to assess scientific impact, yet they often overlook the temporal dynamics of knowledge dissemination. Time to first citation has gained relevance as an indicator of early research visibility, particularly in emerging research systems. Objective: To analyze time to first citation of Ecuadorian medical publications and identify publication characteristics associated with citation timing using a survival analysis approach. Methods: A scientometric study was conducted on Ecuadorian medical publications indexed between 2015 and 2024, with citation follow-up through December 31, 2024. Descriptive statistics summarized publication characteristics and citation counts at 2 and 5 years. Time to first citation was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier estimators and Cox proportional hazards regression models, accounting for right-censored data. Results: A total of 3,968 publications were included. Most articles were published in open access journals (63.0%) and involved international collaboration (69.3%). Publications were predominantly in English (85.1%). Most records were original research articles (2,917; 73.5%), while 597 (15.0%) were review articles; article type information was unavailable for 454 records (11.4%). The median number of cumulative citations was 3 (IQR 1-7) at 2 years and 6 (IQR 3-14) at 5 years. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that approximately 50% of articles received their first citation within the first year, and most were cited within 4 years. In the multivariable Cox regression analysis, international collaboration ( Conclusions: Ecuadorian medical publications demonstrated relatively rapid early citation uptake. Publication language, article type, international collaboration, and authorship characteristics were associated with time to first citation. These findings should be interpreted cautiously given the observational design and limitations in metadata completeness. The study highlights structural factors that may influence early research visibility in emerging research systems.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.