Objective
Our objective was to characterize the most frequently cited articles published in obstetrics and gynecology journals during the last 50 years.
Study Design
We utilized the 2008 edition of Journal Citation Reports and Social Sciences Citation Index database to determine the most frequently cited articles published after 1956. Articles were evaluated for several characteristics, and an unadjusted categorical analysis was performed to compare pre- and post-1980 articles.
Results
The 100 most frequently cited articles were published in 11 journals between 1957 and 2004. Most articles were published by US-based authors. Forty-four articles were related to obstetrics and 56 were related to gynecology. The most common study design was observational. There were only 7 randomized controlled trials, and randomized controlled trials were not more common after 1980 (6.3% vs 8.1%; P = .71).
Conclusion
Most “citation classics” in obstetrics and gynecology are observational studies published in high-impact journals by US-based authors after 1980.
Given the dramatic changes in clinical practice over the last 50 years, how can one assess the contributions of individual journal articles? Evaluative bibliometrics is a field of quantitative science that uses methodologies like citation analysis to evaluate research performance. Citation analysis utilizes citation data to quantify the impact of research as illustrated by the number of references that an article receives over time. Citation rates are assumed to reflect the impact of journal articles, although not necessarily their quality.
According to Eugene Garfield, founder of the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), a “citation classic” is a publication that is highly cited in the ISI Web of Science databases. The Web of Science, which includes the Science Citation Index, the Social Sciences Citation Index, and the Arts & Humanities Citation Index, is an online database that contains citation data for >11,000 research journals.
The citation classics of several fields of medicine and surgery have been described, including reproductive medicine, urology, plastic surgery, general surgery, and dermatology. Authors have also described the most frequently cited articles in specific journals, such as the Journal of Trauma , Fertility and Sterility , and JAMA . These articles provide insights into how medicine and surgery fields have evolved over time and identify those researchers who have made outstanding contributions.
To our knowledge, the most frequently cited journal articles in obstetrics and gynecology journals have not yet been identified. In this study, we identified and described the 100 most frequently cited articles published in journals of obstetrics and gynecology during the past 50 years.
Materials and Methods
We used the 2008 edition of Journal Citation Reports: Science Edition to identify all journals related to obstetrics and gynecology. Under the heading “obstetrics and gynecology,” 61 journals were identified. We then used the Social Sciences Citation Index database to determine the most frequently cited articles published in these journals from the inception of the database in 1956 through August 2009.
The 100 most frequently cited articles were selected for further review. We performed a PubMed search to obtain the texts of articles that were available online. When full text articles were not available online, we used the online abstract. When neither the abstracts nor the full text articles were available online, we retrieved the articles from the university library.
Each of the top 100 articles was evaluated for specific characteristics including the countries and institutions of origin, subject matter, and study design. Subject matter was divided into 2 broad categories, obstetrics and gynecology, and each category was further subdivided to describe the breadth of topics covered by these articles. Observational studies were defined as cohort studies, case-control studies, and case series. Prospective trials were subdivided into randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and experimental trials that were not controlled, not randomized, or both. Basic science articles included bench-top laboratory research or research involving animal models. Articles that did not easily fit into one of these categories were designated as “other.”
We performed an unadjusted, categorical analysis to compare the articles published after 1980 to those published before 1980.
Results
During the study period, 45,351 articles were cited at least once and 1414 articles were cited ≥100 times in the Social Sciences Citation Index database. Table 1 lists the 100 most frequently cited articles in descending order according to the number of citations each received. The most frequently cited article, which was published by Louis Gluck and colleagues in 1971, received 1090 citations. These articles were published from 1957 through 2004. The Figure illustrates the breakdown of the top 100 articles by decade of publication. Sixty-three articles were published after 1980. The decade in which the highest proportion of articles was published was 1980 through 1989 with 37 articles.
| Title | Journal | Reference no. | No. of citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diagnosis of the respiratory distress syndrome by amniocentesis | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1971;173:629-30 | 1090 |
| Comparative aspects of the brain growth spurt | Early Hum Dev | 1979;3:79-83 | 1047 |
| Preeclampsia: an endothelial cell disorder | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1989;161:1200-4 | 938 |
| The standardization of terminology of female pelvic organ prolapse and pelvic floor dysfunction | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1996;175:10-7 | 927 |
| A radioimmunoassay which specifically measures human chorionic gonadotropin in the presence of human luteinizing hormone | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1972;113:751-8 | 882 |
| High fertilization and implantation rates after intracytoplasmic sperm injection | Hum Reprod | 1993;8:1061-6 | 843 |
| The classification and definition of the hypertensive disorders of pregnancy | Obstet Gynecol | 1988;158:892-8 | 744 |
| Human papillomavirus infection of the cervix: relative risk associations of 15 common anogenital types | Obstet Gynecol | 1992;79:328-37 | 739 |
| A standard of fetal growth for the United States of America | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1976;126:555-64 | 713 |
| Pelvic scoring for elective induction | Obstet Gynecol | 1964;24:266-8 | 683 |
| Uterine leiomyomata: etiology, symptomatology, and management | Fertil Steril | 1981;36:433-45 | 677 |
| Syndrome of hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count: a severe consequence of hypertension in pregnancy | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1982;142:159-67 | 666 |
| Revised American Fertility Society classification of endometriosis | Fertil Steril | 1985;43:351-2 | 656 |
| Sperm morphologic features as a prognostic factor in in vitro fertilization | Fertil Steril | 1986;46:1118-23 | 619 |
| Report of the National High Blood Pressure Education Program Working Group on High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 2000;183:S1-22 | 614 |
| Predictive value of abnormal sperm morphology in in vitro fertilization | Fertil Steril | 1988;49:112-7 | 607 |
| Lecithin-sphingomyelin ratios in amniotic fluid in normal and abnormal pregnancy | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1973;115:539-46 | 601 |
| Epidemiology of surgically managed pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence | Obstet Gynecol | 1997;89:501-6 | 598 |
| Liquor amnii analysis in the management of the pregnancy complicated by rhesus sensitization | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1961;82:1359-70 | 551 |
| On intrauterine growth. The significance of prenatal care | Int J Gynaecol Obstet | 1970;8:895-912 | 549 |
| Revised 2003 consensus on diagnostic criteria and long-term health risks related to polycystic ovary syndrome | Fertil Steril | 2004;81:19-25 | 529 |
| Complications of abdominal and vaginal hysterectomy among women of reproductive age in the United States. The Collaborative Review of Sterilization | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1982;144:841-8 | 514 |
| Cardiovascular responses to hypoxemia and acidemia in fetal lambs | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1974;120:817-24 | 513 |
| Fetal growth and perinatal viability in California | Obstet Gynecol | 1982;59:624-32 | 508 |
| Hormone replacement therapy and endometrial cancer risk: a meta-analysis | Obstet Gynecol | 1995;85:304-13 | 487 |
| A United States national reference for fetal growth | Obstet Gynecol | 1996;87:163-8 | 485 |
| Incidence, prevalence, and trends of acute pelvic inflammatory disease and its consequences in industrialized countries | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1980;138:880-92 | 485 |
| Improved pregnancy rate in human in vitro fertilization with the use of a medium based on the composition of human tubal fluid | Fertil Steril | 1985;44:493-8 | 478 |
| Revised 2003 consensus on diagnostic criteria and long-term health risks related to polycystic ovary syndrome | Hum Reprod | 2004;19:41-7 | 475 |
| The CA 125 tumor-associated antigen: a review of the literature | Hum Reprod | 1989;4:1-12 | 470 |
| Criteria for screening tests for gestational diabetes | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1982;144:768-73 | 469 |
| Preeclampsia: an imbalance in placental prostacyclin and thromboxane production | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1985;152:335-40 | 469 |
| An association between low maternal serum alpha fetoprotein and fetal chromosomal abnormalities | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1984;148:886-94 | 454 |
| Are there behavioral states in the human fetus? | Early Hum Dev | 1982;6:177-95 | 454 |
| Natural history of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia: a critical review | Int J Gynecol Pathol | 1993;12:186-92 | 445 |
| A review of premature birth and subclinical infection | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1992;166:1515-28 | 444 |
| Radioimmunoassay of serum progesterone in women receiving oral contraceptive steroids | Contraception | 1972;5:129-46 | 444 |
| Higher success rate by intracytoplasmic sperm injection than by subzonal insemination. Report of a second series of 300 consecutive treatment cycles | Hum Reprod | 1993;8:1055-60 | 428 |
| Testicular dysgenesis syndrome: an increasingly common developmental disorder with environmental aspects | Hum Reprod | 2001;16:972-8 | 426 |
| Antepartum fetal evaluation: development of a fetal biophysical profile | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1980;136:787-95 | 417 |
| Tissue distribution of a coelomic-epithelium-related antigen recognized by the monoclonal antibody OC125 | Int J Gynecol Pathol | 1983;2:275-85 | 414 |
| Embryo morphology, developmental rates, and maternal age are correlated with chromosome abnormalities | Fertil Steril | 1995;64:382-91 | 411 |
| Fetal blood sampling during pregnancy with use of a needle guided by ultrasound: a study of 606 consecutive cases | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1985;153:655-60 | 409 |
| Postoperative external irradiation and prognostic parameters in stage I endometrial carcinoma: clinical and histopathologic study of 540 patients | Obstet Gynecol | 1980;56:419-27 | 397 |
| Urethrovaginal fixation to Cooper’s ligament for correction of stress incontinence, cystocele, and prolapse | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1961;81:281-90 | 391 |
| Antenatal corticosteroid therapy: a meta-analysis of the randomized trials, 1972 to 1994 | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1995;173:322-35 | 386 |
| Estrogen replacement therapy II: a prospective study in the relationship to carcinoma and cardiovascular and metabolic problems | Obstet Gynecol | 1979;54:74-9 | 386 |
| Blood flow to fetal organs as a function of arterial oxygen content | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1979;135:637-46 | 386 |
| Effect of acute pelvic inflammatory disease on fertility | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1975;121:707-13 | 386 |
| Estimation of fetal weight with the use of head, body, and femur measurements–a prospective study | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1985;151:333-7 | 385 |
| Five classes of extended hysterectomy for women with cervical cancer | Obstet Gynecol | 1974;44:265-72 | 381 |
| Accelerated disappearance of ovarian follicles in mid life: implications for forecasting menopause | Hum Reprod | 1992;7:1342-6 | 376 |
| Immunologic analysis of sperm-immobilizing factor found in sera of women with unexplained sterility | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1968;101:677-87 | 376 |
| An evaluation of two equations for predicting fetal weight by ultrasound | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1982;142:47-54 | 376 |
| Restoration of fertility to oophorectomized sheep by ovarian autografts stored at –196 degrees C | Hum Reprod | 1994;9:597-603 | 374 |
| Peroxidative breakdown of phospholipids in human spermatozoa, spermicidal properties of fatty acid peroxides, and protective action of seminal plasma | Fertil Steril | 1979;31:531-7 | 373 |
| The normal menopause transition | Maturitas | 1992;14:103-15 | 371 |
| Intrauterine fatty acid accretion rates in human brain: implications for fatty acid requirements | Early Hum Dev | 1980;4:121-9 | 370 |
| Revised American Society for Reproductive Medicine classification of endometriosis: 1996 | Fertil Steril | 1997;67:817-21 | 369 |
| Studies of prolactin secretion in human pregnancy | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1972;113:14-20 | 369 |
| Infection and labor. III. Interleukin-1: a signal for the onset of parturition | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1989;160:1117-23 | 365 |
| Etiologic factors in 1294 consecutive cases of male infertility | Fertil Steril | 1971;22:469-74 | 361 |
| A preliminary report on cigarette smoking and the incidence of prematurity | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1957;73:807-15 | 361 |
| Antiphospholipid antibody-associated recurrent pregnancy loss: treatment with heparin and low-dose aspirin is superior to low-dose aspirin alone | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1996;174:1584-9 | 360 |
| Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome: a current survey | Fertil Steril | 1978;30:255-68 | 359 |
| Sperm antibodies: their role in infertility | Fertil Steril | 1984;42:171-83 | 358 |
| Infection and preterm labor | Clin Obstet Gynecol | 1988;31:553-84 | 355 |
| Objectivized diagnosis of acute pelvic inflammatory disease. Diagnostic and prognostic value of routine laparoscopy | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1969;105:1088-98 | 351 |
| Hirsutism: implications, etiology, and management | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1981;140:815-30 | 350 |
| Estrogen replacement therapy I: a 10-year prospective study in the relationship to osteoporosis | Obstet Gynecol | 1979;53:277-81 | 349 |
| Hysterectomy in the United States, 1988-1990 | Obstet Gynecol | 1994;83:549-55 | 346 |
| The minimum effective dose of estrogen for prevention of postmenopausal bone loss | Obstet Gynecol | 1984;63:759-63 | 345 |
| Early embryonic mortality in women | Fertil Steril | 1982;38:447-53 | 344 |
| Laser photovaporization of endometrium for the treatment of menorrhagia | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1981;140:14-9 | 342 |
| Two patterns of perinatal brain damage and their conditions of occurrence | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1972;112:246-76 | 342 |
| Effect of obesity on conversion of plasma androstenedione to estrone in postmenopausal women with and without endometrial cancer | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1978;130:448-55 | 340 |
| Transvaginal sonographic characterization of ovarian disease: evaluation of a new scoring system to predict ovarian malignancy | Obstet Gynecol | 1991;78:70-6 | 339 |
| Circulating gonadotropins, estrogens, and androgens in polycystic ovarian disease | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1975;121:496-500 | 331 |
| Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome: an update review | Obstet Gynecol Surv | 1989;44:430-40 | 331 |
| Clinical and histologic studies of ovarian carcinoma. Long-term follow-up of 990 cases | Obstet Gynecol | 1971;37:1-9 | 328 |
| Primary cytoreductive surgery for epithelial ovarian cancer | Obstet Gynecol | 1983;61:413-20 | 328 |
| Maternal-perinatal outcome associated with the syndrome of hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets in severe preeclampsia-eclampsia | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1986;155:501-9 | 328 |
| Observations on heart rate and pH in the human fetus during labor | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1969;104:1190-206 | 327 |
| The syndromes of hydatidiform mole. I. Cytogenetic and morphologic correlations | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1978;131:665-71 | 327 |
| Prenatal and intrapartum high-risk screening. I. Prediction of the high-risk neonate | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1973;117:1-9 | 324 |
| Human papillomavirus testing by hybrid capture appears to be useful in triaging women with a cytologic diagnosis of atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1995;172:946-54 | 323 |
| Cocaine use during pregnancy: adverse perinatal outcome | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1987;157:686-90 | 323 |
| Underlying disorders associated with severe early-onset preeclampsia | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1995;173:1042-8 | 322 |
| Women with polycystic ovary syndrome wedge resected in 1956 to 1965: a long-term follow-up focusing on natural history and circulating hormones | Fertil Steril | 1992;57:505-13 | 321 |
| Basal follicle-stimulating hormone level is a better predictor of in vitro fertilization performance than age | Fertil Steril | 1991;55:784-91 | 320 |
| The fetal inflammatory response syndrome | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1998;179:194-202 | 319 |
| Amniotic fluid inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-6, interleukin-1beta, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha), neonatal brain white matter lesions, and cerebral palsy | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1997;177:19-26 | 318 |
| A prospective randomized trial of blastocyst culture and transfer in in-vitro fertilization | Hum Reprod | 1998;13:3434-40 | 317 |
| Five year’s experience with the chemotherapy of metastatic choriocarcinoma and related trophoblastic tumors in women | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1961;82:631-40 | 316 |
| Structural support of the urethra as it relates to stress urinary incontinence: the hammock hypothesis | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1994;170:1713-20 | 314 |
| Penetration of human spermatozoa into the human zona pellucida and the zona-free hamster egg: a study of fertile donors and infertile patients | Fertil Steril | 1980;33:534-42 | 314 |
| A follow-up study of patients with cervical dysplasia | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1969;105:386-93 | 314 |
| Prevalence, microbiology, and clinical significance of intraamniotic infection in twin gestations with preterm labor | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1990;163:757-61 | 314 |
| Estrogen improves psychological function in asymptomatic postmenopausal women | Obstet Gynecol | 1991;78:991-5 | 313 |
| Lipid peroxidation in pregnancy: new perspectives on preeclampsia | Am J Obstet Gynecol | 1989;161:1025-34 | 312 |
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