The baseline time span for this database is (publication years)
1998-August 31, 2008 from the fourth bimonthly update (a 10-year + 8-month
period). The resulting database contained 13,564 (10 years) and 4,554 (2
years) papers; 37,080 authors; 163 nations; 1,570 journals; and 9,186
institutions.
Interviews, first-person essays, and profiles about
people in a wide variety of fields which pertain to
this special topic of Tuberculosis.
OVERVIEW
Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious infectious disease caused by
Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Though it is preventable and
treatable, there is a growing concern with regard to drug resistance, as
well as coinfection with HIV. According to the US Centers for Disease
Control, although there has been a steady decline in the incidence of TB
since 1992, an excess of 14,000 cases were reported in the US in 2005. The
World Health Organization estimated that there were 1.5 million deaths
resulting from TB in 2006, and a further 200,000 deaths resulting from
HIV-associated TB. WHO also estimates that a person with active untreated
TB can infect 10-15 other people a year.
This month, ScienceWatch.com examines the literature on TB over
the past decade and over the past two years, based on original articles and
review papers published between 1998 and 2008 with the word "tuberculosis"
in the title.
Among the topics covered in original papers published over the past decade
are: whole genome studies, cell studies, susceptibility genes, gene and
protein expression profiling, methods for infection typing, evolutionary
speculation, and model experiments, as well as the global burden of TB and
the incidence of reinfection. Another highly cited original article
discusses the incidence of TB in patients being treated with infliximab.
Review articles address such concerns as the burden, diagnostic standards,
management, and immunology of TB.
Drug resistance and new diagnostic tests dominate the two-year listing,
with nine papers. Another prevalent theme is exploring the mechanisms of TB
and potential TB vaccines. Genetic diversity and host-pathogen
compatibility are also covered. Review articles on this list include
surveys of the incidence of TB in sub-Saharan Africa, vaccination
strategies, and pro-poor healthcare policy and strategy in the developing
world.
Methodology: The baseline time span for
this database is (publication years) 1998-August 31, 2008 from the
fourth bimonthly update (a 10-year + 8-month period). The resulting
database contained 13,564 (10 years) and 4,554 (2 years) papers; 37,080
authors; 163 nations; 1,570 journals; and 9,186 institutions.
Rankings: Once the database was in place, it was used to
generate list of authors, journals, institutions, and nations. Rankings for
author, journal, institution, and country are listed in three ways:
according to total cites, total papers, and total cites/paper. The paper
thresholds and corresponding percentages used to determine scientist,
institution, country, and journal rankings according to total cites/paper,
and total papers respectively are as follows: