THE TOP 100 MOST-CITED ARTICLES IN VARICOCELE: A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS Purchased

Varicocele is one of the most common causes of male infertility. Bibliometric analysis can assist researchers in identifying research trends, providing clinicians with a general perspective, and guiding future research. In this study, we aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis of the top 100 most cited (T100) articles to examine the characteristics and distribution of the most impactful publications on varicocele.

Search terms related to varicocele were compiled and used to interrogate the Web of Science Core Collection database. The 100 most cited manuscripts were identified and further evaluated by manuscript type, author, institution, journal, and year of publication. The search was restricted to the English language.

T100 articles were published between 1980 and 2017, and the citation counts for the T100 articles ranged from 683 to 91. A total of 24 countries worldwide contributed to T100 articles; the country with the highest number of manuscripts in the T100 is the USA (n = 54). The most productive institution was the Cleveland Clinic, which had 14 articles. The authors with the most articles in the T100 are Agarwal A. and Goldstein M., who have 13 and 9 articles, respectively. T100 articles were published in 22 different journals, and the most T100 articles were published in the Journal of Urology, which had a 2023 IF of 5.9 (n = 25).

In this study, we identified the T100 articles in varicocele and analyzed them bibliometrically. Our findings showed that the USA is the dominant country regarding T100 articles, institutions, and scientists. The journals that published the most T100 articles were American-origin journals such as the Journal of Urology and Fertility and Sterility. The effects of varicocele on spermatozoa and fertility, the surgical techniques and outcomes of varicocelectomy were the topics that attracted the researcher’s academic attention most.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.