African Research Output Within the Top 5 Vascular Surgery Journals.

Abstract

Background: With Africa's population growth and an epidemiological shift from communicable to non-communicable diseases, there is an urgent need to expand vascular surgery capacity across the continent. Despite a high disease burden, Sub-Saharan Africa contributes less than 1% of the global surgical research, with significant challenges in surgical infrastructure, access to consumables, and limited research output. This study assesses the publication output of African authors in the top five vascular surgery journals and explores trends in African vascular research.

Methods: The top five vascular surgery journals, based on CiteScore-impact factor, were selected: Journal of Vascular Surgery (JVS), European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery (EJVES), Journal of Vascular Surgery: Venous and Lymphatic Disorders (JVS-VL), Annals of Vascular Surgery (AVS), and Journal of Endovascular Therapy (JEVT). A PubMed search identified articles authored by researchers affiliated with African institutions. After removing duplicates and exclusions, 252 articles were analyzed using SPSS v27.0.1.

Results: AVS and JVS were the most frequent publication venues, accounting for 32.5% and 28.6% of articles, respectively. Egypt and South Africa were the leading contributors, producing 44.8% and 28.2% of the research, respectively. Most studies were observational (81.3%), with only 7.1% being interventional. Research output has steadily increased, with 38.1% of articles published in the 2010s and 36.5% in the 2020s.

Conclusion: Vascular surgery is an emerging specialty in Africa, facing challenges, particularly in research. However, the number of publications in leading vascular surgery journals by African researchers is increasing, with Egypt and South Africa leading the way. More efforts are needed to enhance access to vascular surgery and research in Africa to boost the continent's contribution to global vascular surgery literature.