Objectives: To assess the quality and quantity of Saudi publications in oncology over a 10-year period. Methods: A systematic PubMed search was conducted between January 2008 and December 2017 to retrieve all Saudi oncology publications. Data about the articles was collected. The level of evidence (LOE) was independently assessed by 2 authors. Two 5-year periods (2008-2012 and 2013-2017) were compared using the relevant parameters. Clinicaltrials.gov was also searched for all oncology trials registered in Saudi Arabia. Original Article Results: A total of 839 publications met our inclusion criteria. The most common type of research was case series, totaling 32% of all publications. Clinical trials formed less than 2% of the total. The LOE was I, II, III, and IV in 0.3%, 2.1%, 58.4%, and 39.3% of the included publications, respectively. The LOE was the same in the 2 periods. There were more publications in international journals (p=0.004), more international collaborations (p=0.001), and higher journal impact factors (p=0.037) in 2013-2017 than in 2008-2012. Only 76 registered clinical trials were found in the Clinicaltrials.gov registry. Conclusion: Despite an increase in the number of Saudi publications in the field of oncology over time, the LOE did not change. There were, however, some improvements in the international collaboration and journal impact factor, as well as an increase in the number of studies published in international journals. These observations call for a national strategy to improve oncology research in Saudi Arabia.

PURPOSE To examine the trends and quality metrics of publications by radiation oncologists in Saudi Arabia. METHODS PubMed was searched using names of all Saudi radiation oncologists to retrieve published articles between January 2010 and December 2019. International collaboration, journal impact factor and country of origin, and number of citations were collected. Each article was assessed for epidemiologic type and independently assigned a level of evidence (LOE) by two authors. The trend in publications was examined and compared in the first and second 5-year periods (2010-2014 and 2015-2019) using relevant parameters. RESULTS A total of 186 publications were found and included. The most common type of research was cohort studies followed by case reports and case series in 24%, 14%, and 13% of all publications, respectively. Dosimetry, clinical, and preclinical studies formed 7%, 8.6%, and 7.5% of the total publications, respectively. The LOE was I, II, III, IV, and not applicable in 8.6%, 22%, 25.8%, 29%, and 14.5% of the included publications, respectively. Comparing the first and second 5-year periods, there was an increase in international collaboration ( P < .001) in the second period. The number of citations ( P < .001) and journal impact factor ( P = .028) were lower in the second period. LOE and publications in international journals were not statistically different between the two periods. CONCLUSION Although radiation oncology research activity in Saudi Arabia has gained momentum in terms of volume and international collaboration over time, the LOE has not improved. This calls for a national effort to make the contribution to the literature a priority, allocate adequate resources, and apply appropriate measures to enhance research productivity and quality.

Objectives We investigated the relationship between acromial shape, classified as Type I-IV by magnetic resonance imaging, and the occurrence and characteristics of rotator cuff tears (RCTs). Methods This retrospective cohort study included 89 patients aged 25-60 years who underwent RCT surgeries in the Orthopedic Department at King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH) from January 2014 to April 2019. We collected imaging findings from the KAUH record system, which were then entered into a Google form (Google, Inc., Mountain View, CA) and exported to Microsoft Excel 2016 (Microsoft ® Corp., Redmond, WA). Correlations between variables were assessed using Chi-squared tests. Results The supraspinatus muscle in both men and women was most commonly affected by RCTs, accounting for 73.6% of all tears. Subscapularis was the next most commonly injured muscle of the rotator cuff (15.1%), followed by the infraspinatus muscle (11.3%). The majority of supraspinatus, infraspinatus, and subscapularis tears (69.2%, 66.7%, and 56.3%, respectively) were associated with flat acromia. In all cases, tears in association with flat acromia were more prevalent among women (supraspinatus: 51.3% in women, 17.9% in men, p = 0.030; infraspinatus: 50% in women, 16.7% in men, p = 0.292; subscapularis: 43.8% in women, 12.5% in men, p = 0.054). Conclusions No correlation exists between acromial shape and sex, regardless of the specific muscle injured. However, supraspinatus injury, acromial shape, and sex are significantly related; right-side partial tear injuries occur more frequently among women aged ≥ 50 years with flat acromia than other RCTs.

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