Bibliometric analysis of the scientific production of rheumatology departments in Spain during the 2013-2022 period

Abstract

Background and objective

Bibliometric studies of scientific production in Spanish Rheumatology are scarce. The aim of this study was to analyze the bibliographic production of Rheumatology Services in Spain over the period 2013-2022.

Materials and methods

Original articles and reviews with the affiliation of the first or corresponding author to a Spanish rheumatology Service/Department/Section/Unit were identified in the Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus databases. Keywords and titles were used to classify articles by field (clinical, epidemiological or basic) and pathology. International collaborations and collaborations between Autonomous Communities (AC) were identified. Quantitative bibliometric indicators were obtained (number of articles published per year, pathology and AC) and impact indicators were obtained (based on the number of citations per article). The H-index was also calculated.

Results

The total number of publications was 2321, with an annual growth rate of 4.1% in the period analyzed. In 14.1% of the articles there were international collaborations, mainly with the United States and the United Kingdom, while between ACs the most numerous were between Madrid and Catalonia. The pathologies with the highest H-index were rheumatoid arthritis (RA), spondyloarthropathies (SpA), osteoarthritis and vasculitis (34, 32, 28 and 26, respectively). The H-index for the Spanish rheumatology services as a whole was 69.

Discussion and conclusions

The scientific production of rheumatology services/departments/sections/units in our country increased between 2013 and 2022. By pathology, the scientific production in RA and SpA stands out.