Turkey’s top publications in cardiovascular medicine in the past 25 years: evaluation of its impact

OBJECTIVE: To identify “genuine” publications from Turkey’s institutions since 1992 that have cumulatively contributed the most to global cardiovascular medicine. METHODS: Based on data from the Web of Science, 146 publications from Turkey were identified having received ≥50 citations as of late July, 2017. Papers with more than a minor share by international authors were excluded. RESULTS: Hundred and ten primary authors generated 147 medical papers which received ≥50 (interquartile range, 54; 86) citations. These articles corresponded in quality to the top 12% global papers. Half of the articles were published from 2002 to late 2007, with a median exposure period of 12 years. Peak performance was reached in 2004–’07, with a mean of 15–20 papers annually, which then regressed to five papers in 2008–’13, representing an estimated 50% decline. Cardiology generated 105 articles (20 in collaboration with other branches), cardiovascular surgery generated 27 articles, and pediatric cardiology generated 5 articles. Publications arose from 26 medical faculties, Gülhane Military Academy, and 9 hospitals not which were not academically affiliated. The performance of many related Turkish institutions was disappointing. CONCLUSION: Turkey’s contribution to cardiovascular medicine has further declined slightly in the current assessment, particularly since 2007. To prevent a further gap in Turkey’s contribution to the field, an undelayed return is needed by building an environment that allows focusing on research with a potential to contribute to medicine.