A bibliometric analysis of pharmaceutical research

This study examines pharmaceutical research from a bibliometric perspective. It finds that there are bibliometric correlates of successful pharmaceutical research, in particular, the number and proportion of star (highly cited) clinical medical articles. The research also reveals that pharmaceutical company research reported in basic biomedical research journals is very highly cited, on a par with NIH supported medical school research. The policy implications of this are discussed. In addition, the pharmaceutical output (approved new drugs)/input (R&D budget) measures developed permit a ranking and characterization of the research performance of 24 major pharmaceutical companies.