Positive Association Between Online Attention and the Bibliometric Impact of Shoulder Instability Publications

PURPOSE: To obtain a quantifiable measure of the frequency with which a shoulder instability article is discussed online and the association with its corresponding bibliometric impact, based on the Scopus Cite Score (SCS) or Web of Science Impact Factor (WSIF). METHODS: The top 100 most-mentioned articles on shoulder instability based on Altmetric Attention Score (AAS) were extracted from the Altmetric Database. Mentions within blogs, news articles and outlets, public policy, and social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, were included. Study impact was assessed using SCS or WSIF. The degree of association between AAS and impact was determined using Spearman correlation, logarithmic regression, and multivariate regression. RESULTS: The most common study designs were “Clinical Trial,” with 52 articles (49.5%), “Systematic Review” with 16 articles (15.2%), and “Review” with 10 articles (9.5%). Twitter provided more online mentions than other platforms, with the average article being discussed 27.7 times (range 0-220 times). A significant positive effect (estimate = 2.616, P = .0075) was observed between the AAS and WSIF, based on the logarithmic regression. Multivariate regression revealed that blogs help raise both WSIF and SCS (estimate = 7.272, P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Social media and other online platforms are a strong way to disseminate information to patients. A positive association was observed between overall online attention and the bibliometric impact of an article related to shoulder instability. Clinical trials related to shoulder instability that receive online mentions, especially discussion in blogs, are more likely to be cited in the future than their counterparts. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The results of our study can guide authors as they aim to disseminate their articles. Twitter may be used as a tool to reach patients who may not venture into academic journals with current peer-reviewed articles. Further, blogs may be used to reach academic audiences and raise bibliometric impact broadly.