Global Disparities Between Pediatric Publications and Disease Burden From 2006 to 2015

Abstract

There is a disproportionate burden of pediatric disease in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs); however, the proportion and relation of published articles to childhood disease burden in LMICs have not been assessed previously. This study aimed to determine whether published articles and disease topics from research conducted in LMICs in the most widely cited pediatric journals reflected the global burden of childhood disease. We reviewed all articles published from 2006 to 2015 in the 3 pediatric journals with the highest Eigenfactor scores to identify studies conducted in the World Bank-designated LMICs. We abstracted study topic, design, purpose, country, and funding sources. We derived descriptive statistics, Fisher's exact χ² test, Monte Carlo estimates, and Spearman's rank order coefficients. Of the 19 676 articles reviewed, 10 494 were original research articles. Of those, 965 (9.2%) were conducted in LMICs. Over the study period, the proportion of published articles originating from LMICs increased (r ² = 0.77). Disease topics did not reflect the underlying burden of disease as measured in disability-adjusted life years (Spearman's rank order coefficient = 0.25). Despite bearing the majority of the world's burden of disease, articles from LMICs made up a small proportion of all published articles in the 3 pediatric journals with the highest Eigenfactor scores. The number of published articles from LMICs increased over the study period; nevertheless, the topics did not coincide with the burden of disease in LMICs. These discrepancies highlight the need for development of a research agenda to address the diseases that are the greatest threat to the majority of children worldwide.

Keywords: disease burden; general pediatrics; global health; publications; publishing disparity.

Figure 1.

Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses diagram for article inclusion and exclusion from the 3 journals in pediatrics with the highest Eigenfactor scores* from 2006 to 2015. *Journal of Pediatrics, Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, and Pediatrics.

Figure 2.

Proportion of articles from low- and middle-income countries over all articles meeting inclusion criteria in the 3 journals in pediatrics with the highest Eigenfactor scores* from 2006 to 2015. *Journal of Pediatrics, Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, and Pediatrics.