Naslov
Influence of the 1991-1995 war on Croatian publications in the MEDLINE database

Autori
Lukenda, Josip

Izvornik
Scientometrics (0138-9130) 69 (2006), 1; 21-36

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
Croatia; war; MEDLINE; R&D; human resources in science; publication rate

Sažetak
Aim was tto identify the influence of the 1991–1995 war on Croatian biomedical publications with reference to the Croatian universities and medical centers in Zagreb, Split, Rijeka and Osijek and their regions. Internet provider PubMed was used to search MEDLINE database in the pre-war (1988–1990), war (1991–1995) and post-war (1996–2000) periods. Annual numbers of publications in the MEDLINE and Core Clinical Journals (Abridged Index Medicus ; AIMjournals) were calculated for each center in the above mentioned periods. Our analysis included socio-economic indicators such as gross domestic product (GDP) and total employment, human resources such as the number of full-time researchers, teachers and researchers in biomedical sciences, university graduates, master and doctoral thesis. Descriptive statistics and t-test were used. In the 1988–2000 period the proportion of Croatian publications in the MEDLINE database was 0.076%. The proportion of AIM-publication in the MEDLINE was 11.5%, while the proportion of Croatian AIM-publications in Croatian publications in the MEDLINE was only 0.02%. Compared to the pre-war period, Croatia increased the number of publications in the MEDLINE in the war period (p<0.05) and post-war period (p<0.01). In the war period GDP and other socio-economic indicators decreased in contrast to an increase in biomedical publications. All centers increased the number of MEDLINE publications significantly in the war and post-war periods (p<0.01), while the growth of AIM-publications in Zagreb and Split was not significant. The proportion of biomedical publications in Zagreb decreased in the war and post-war periods while it was almost doubled in the other centers. Croatia increased its biomedical publication rates (per 100, 000 inhabitants per year) from 3.8 (the pre-war period) to 6.6 (the war period) and 9.0 (the post-war period). In those periods biomedical publication rates were also increased in all centers with belonging regions, in spite of the war. A small number of teachers and researchers in biomedical sciences in Split and Osijek produced more publications per person in the war period than a larger number of their colleagues in other two centers. Croatia and its centers, Zagreb, Split, Rijeka and Osijek increased biomedical publication rates despite enormous destruction and human losses caused by the war. Despite a significant increase in the quantity of Croatian publications in the MEDLINE database, the number of AIM-publications increased only slightly.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Javno zdravstvo i zdravstvena zaštita

POVEZANOST RADA