Highest Impact Articles in Microsurgery: A Citation Analysis

Abstract

Background Microsurgery has developed significantly since the inception of the first surgical microscope. There have been few attempts to describe “classic” microsurgery articles. In this study citation analysis was done to identify the most highly cited clinical and basic science articles published in five peer-reviewed plastic surgery journals.

Methods Thomson/Reuters web of knowledge was used to identify the most highly cited microsurgery articles from five journals: Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Annals of Plastic Surgery, Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery, Journal of Reconstructive Microsurgery, and Microsurgery. Articles were identified and sorted based on the number of citations and citations per year.

Results The 50 most cited clinical and basic science articles were identified. For clinical articles, number of total citations ranged from 120 to 691 (mean, 212.38) and citations per year ranged from 30.92 to 3.05 (mean, 9.33). The most common defect site was the head and neck (n = 15, 30%), and flaps were perforator and muscle/musculocutaneous flaps (n = 10 each, 20%, respectively). For basic science articles, number of citations ranged from 71 to 332 (mean, 130.82) and citations per year ranged from 2.20 to 11.07 (mean, 5.27). There were 27 animal, 21 cadaveric, and 2 combined studies.

Conclusions The most highly cited microsurgery articles are a direct reflection of the educational and clinical trends. Awareness of the most frequently cited articles may serve as a basis for core knowledge in the education of plastic surgery trainees.

Level of Evidence  III.

Keywords

microsurgery - high impact - citation classic - citation analysis - historical paper

• References

• 1 Masic I. Medical publication and scientometrics. J Res Med Sci 2013; 18 (6) 516-521
• 2 Roelants G. Citation analysis. Bull Med Libr Assoc 1978; 66 (3) 363-364
• 3 Paladugu R, Schein M, Gardezi S, Wise L. One hundred citation classics in general surgical journals. World J Surg 2002; 26 (9) 1099-1105
• 4 Fenton JE, Roy D, Hughes JP, Jones AS. A century of citation classics in otolaryngology-head and neck Surgery journals. J Laryngol Otol 2002; 116 (7) 494-498
• 5 Dubin D, Häfner AW, Arndt KA. Citation classics in clinical dermatologic journals. Citation analysis, biomedical journals, and landmark articles, 1945-1990. Arch Dermatol 1993; 129 (9) 1121-1129
• 6 Baltussen A, Kindler CH. Citation classics in critical care medicine. Intensive Care Med 2004; 30 (5) 902-910
• 7 Celayir S, Sander S, Elicevik M, Vural A, Celayir AC. The most commonly cited articles in pediatric surgical journals. Eur J Pediatr Surg 2008; 18 (3) 160-163
• 8 Nam JJ, Chung KK, King BT , et al. Citation classics in the burn literature during the past 55 years. J Burn Care Res 2014; 35 (2) 176-185
• 9 Garfield E. 100 citation classics from the Journal of the American Medical Association. JAMA 1987; 257 (1) 52-59
• 10 Ibrahim GM, Snead III OC, Rutka JT, Lozano AM. The most cited works in epilepsy: Trends in the “Citation Classics”. Epilepsia 2012; 53 (5) 765-770
• 11 Zhang WJ, Li YF, Zhang JL, Xu M, Yan RL, Jiang H. Classic citations in main plastic and reconstructive surgery journals. Ann Plast Surg 2013; 71 (1) 103-108
• 12 Loonen MP, Hage JJ, Kon M. Plastic Surgery Classics: characteristics of 50 top-cited articles in four Plastic Surgery Journals since 1946. Plast Reconstr Surg 2008; 121 (5) 320e-327e
• 13 Thomson Reuters Web of Science. Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) Journal Citation Reports. Accessed 2013. Available at: http://wokinfo.com/products_tools/analytical/jcr/
• 14 Taylor GI, Miller GD, Ham FJ. The free vascularized bone graft. A clinical extension of microvascular techniques. Plast Reconstr Surg 1975; 55 (5) 533-544
• 15 Hidalgo DA. Fibula free flap: a new method of mandible reconstruction. Plast Reconstr Surg 1989; 84 (1) 71-79
• 16 Godina M. Early microsurgical reconstruction of complex trauma of the extremities. Plast Reconstr Surg 1986; 78 (3) 285-292
• 17 Allen RJ, Treece P. Deep inferior epigastric perforator flap for breast reconstruction. Ann Plast Surg 1994; 32 (1) 32-38
• 18 Daniel RK, Taylor GI. Distant transfer of an island flap by microvascular anastomoses. A clinical technique. Plast Reconstr Surg 1973; 52 (2) 111-117
• 19 Boyd JB, Taylor GI, Corlett R. The vascular territories of the superior epigastric and the deep inferior epigastric systems. Plast Reconstr Surg 1984; 73 (1) 1-16
• 20 Moon HK, Taylor GI. The vascular anatomy of rectus abdominis musculocutaneous flaps based on the deep superior epigastric system. Plast Reconstr Surg 1988; 82 (5) 815-832
• 21 Taylor GI, Daniel RK. The anatomy of several free flap donor sites. Plast Reconstr Surg 1975; 56 (3) 243-253
• 22 Zamboni WA, Roth AC, Russell RC, Graham B, Suchy H, Kucan JO. Morphologic analysis of the microcirculation during reperfusion of ischemic skeletal muscle and the effect of hyperbaric oxygen. Plast Reconstr Surg 1993; 91 (6) 1110-1123
• 23 Wei FC, Chen HC, Chuang CC, Noordhoff MS. Fibular osteoseptocutaneous flap: anatomic study and clinical application. Plast Reconstr Surg 1986; 78 (2) 191-200
• 24 Nylen CO. The microscope in aural surgery, its first use and later development. Acta Otolaryngol Suppl 1954; 116: 226-240
• 25 Rickard RF, Hudson DA. A history of vascular and microvascular surgery. Ann Plast Surg 2014; 73 (4) 465-472
• 26 Hirsch JE. An index to quantify an individual's scientific research output. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2005; 102 (46) 16569-16572
• 27 Egghe L. Theory and practise of the g-index. Scientometrics 2006; 69 (1) 131-152
• 28 Garfield E. The history and meaning of the journal impact factor. JAMA 2006; 295 (1) 90-93
• 29 Fersht A. The most influential journals: Impact Factor and Eigenfactor. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2009; 106 (17) 6883-6884
• 30 Shashikiran ND. Appraising journals—impact factor, citation index, …?. J Indian Soc Pedod Prev Dent 2013; 31 (3) 133-134
• 31 Wang D, Song C, Barabási AL. Quantifying long-term scientific impact. Science 2013; 342 (6154) 127-132
• 32 Wei FC, Jain V, Celik N, Chen HC, Chuang DC, Lin CH. Have we found an ideal soft-tissue flap? An experience with 672 anterolateral thigh flaps. Plast Reconstr Surg 2002; 109 (7) 2219-2226 , discussion 2227–2230
• 33 Hallock GG. If based on citation volume, perforator flaps have landed mainstream. Plast Reconstr Surg 2012; 130 (5) 769e-771e
• 34 Volgas DA. OTD Classic Article Review: Early microsurgical reconstruction of complex trauma of the extremities. Orthop Trauma Dir 2006; 05: 29-35
• 35 Koshima I, Soeda S. Inferior epigastric artery skin flaps without rectus abdominis muscle. Br J Plast Surg 1989; 42 (6) 645-648