General medical publications during COVID-19 show increased dissemination despite lower validation.

Nan GaiKazuyoshi AoyamaDavid FaraoniNeil M GoldenbergDavid N LevinJason T MaynesMark J McVeyFarrukh MunsheyAsad SiddiquiTimothy SwitzerBenjamin Ethan Steinberg

Published in: PloS one (2021)

In this cross-sectional study of publications in four general medical journals, COVID-related articles were significantly different from non-COVID articles based on article characteristics and impact metrics. COVID-related studies were generally shorter articles reporting observational studies with less literature cited and fewer study sites, suggestive of more limited scientific support. They nevertheless had much higher dissemination.

Keyphrases

coronavirus disease
sars cov
healthcare
systematic review
respiratory syndrome coronavirus
emergency department
randomized controlled trial
electronic health record
meta analyses