Gender Disparity in Authorship Among Orthopaedic Surgery Residents

Abstract

Background: Gender disparity remains pervasive in orthopaedic surgery, which affects the research pursuits of orthopaedic surgeons. The purpose of this study was to characterize gender-related authorship trends of orthopaedic surgery residents, including evaluation of gender-concordant publication rates. Methods: An observational cross-sectional analysis of US orthopaedic surgery residency programs was performed. Information on residency programs and demographics of each cohort was collected. Publication metrics consisting of number of first and non-first author publications and H-indices were manually obtained for PGY-3 to PGY-5 residents attending the 25 programs ranked the highest for research output by Doximity. Gender of each resident and senior author was determined from institutional websites using photos, biographies, and preferred pronouns when available. Results: A total of 532 residents, 169 (31.8%) female and 363 (68.2%) male, were included for authorship analysis. Of them, 415 (78%) had at least one first author publication, which did not vary significantly by gender. Female residents had disproportionately fewer first author publications compared with their representation (22% vs. 31.8%, p < 0.00001). Female residents averaged fewer first and non-first author publications compared with male residents (2.8 vs. 4.6, p = 0.0003; 6.4 vs. 10, p = 0.0001 respectively). Despite fewer publications overall, a greater subset of publications by female residents were written in collaboration with a female senior author compared with publications by male residents (p < 0.0001). Male residents had a higher average H-index of 5.4 vs. 3.9 among female residents (p = 0.00007). Conclusion: Despite similar rates of first author publication among male and female residents, female residents had fewer publications overall, lower H-indices, and disproportionately fewer first author publications than would be expected given their representation. Findings from this study suggest that gender disparity in orthopaedic surgery extends to differences in research productivity as early as in residency. This may have negative implications on the career advancement of female orthopaedic surgeons. Additional work is needed to identify and understand biases in research productivity and career advancement, to promote more equitable strategies for academic achievement. Level of Evidence: IV.