The 50 Top-Cited Articles on the Posterior Cruciate Ligament: A Bibliometric Analysis and Review

BACKGROUND: Limited attention has been paid to the natural history, management, and treatment outcomes related to the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL)–deficient knee joint. PURPOSE: To perform a comprehensive bibliometric analysis to evaluate the 50 top-cited articles in PCL research. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHODS: We performed a keyword-based search in the Thomson Reuters Web of Science to generate a list of the 50 most cited articles relevant to the PCL. The included articles were analyzed according to journal, country of origin, publication year, total number of citations, citations per year, citation trends, and type of study (clinical vs basic science). RESULTS: The 50 top-cited articles were published between 1975 and 2012, and the number of individual article citations ranged between 98 and 410. The listed articles were published in 7 journals, with the American Journal of Sports Medicine contributing to more than half of the articles and citations. The United States contributed the most articles (84%) and citations (n = 4873). There were 32 clinical studies and 18 basic science studies. All clinical studies had level 4 clinical evidence, and topics included the natural history of PCL tears, factors predicting the need for surgical intervention, and long-term outcomes of isolated PCL injuries and combined capsuloligamentous injuries. Most (77.8%) of the top-cited basic science articles consisted of experimental or biomechanical studies on human cadaveric knees. CONCLUSION: The current analysis suggests that PCL research is still evolving and needs high-quality prospective evidence to establish sound recommendations.